The credit crunch is here. People are losing their jobs, and even those in safe professions are looking at ways to cut costs. Shopping at a different supermarket, swapping big brands for cheaper homebrand alternatives makes good sense. However, many women are also saving pounds by embarking on home hair dying rather than paying salon prices. Undoubtedly, this can save upwards of £70 (US$115), but could the treatment actually cost you much dearer?
Using Home Hair Dyes
According to Healthhype.com, around 5% of dye users will develop an allergic reaction to a product – whether it’s the first time they use it, or the 100th. The allergic reaction could be as innocuous as localised itching and redness of the scalp, to catastrophic multi-organ failure resulting in death. With around 60% of what is placed on the skin being absorbed by the blood, it is easy to see how such a fast and overwhelming reaction can occur.
To cover the grey, most products contain Ammonia (a skin irritant) and Paraphenylenediamines (PPD), which according to Daniel Field, (hairdresser and a manufacturer of non-toxic plant based dyes) says the ingredients have “been linked to immune disorders, particularly rheumatoid arthritis, and are suspected carcinogens”.
The Risks Of Home Hair Dyes
The Daily Mail has also reported that hair dye can put “localised strain on the immune system as it fights off toxins. They may also build up in the lymph nodes, which help regulate immunity, or deposit in certain tissues such as muscle, or organs such as the liver, straining immunity and at worst, causing cancer.”
Every week there seems to be a new scare story about using chemical hair dyes, yet the industry is booming. According to market research company Mintel, the UK home hair dye market will be worth around £283m (US$465) by 2012, a staggering rise of over 30% on the 2007 figure of £215m(US$354). It is clear that it's going to take more than the national press to make us abandon our beauty regimes.
Alternatives To Home Hair Dying
But, can we reconcile our need for beautiful, younger looking healthy hair with our purses and our health? The answer is yes, with some compromise. Daniel Field has developed a range of natural vegetable and plant derived dyes that use Coconut Oil in place of more damaging Ammonia, and are Peroxide-free. The dyes take longer to work, but are priced on a par with chemical dyes without the irritation or nasty chemical smells. Henna, first used by the Egyptians in 3000bc is still popular and comes in a range of colours. However, Henna too can increase allergic reactions, despite being 100% natural.
Hair dying, whether at home or in a salon, with chemicals or natural plant extracts, does have its risks. To put that risk in perspective, more than 1,000 people die each year in the UK from falling down the stairs. In the last 20 years, two people have died from anaphylactic shock directly linked to a chemical hair colouring product. Although any accidental death is regrettable, it is a fact that you are more likely to die from being hit by a meteorite, than die from dying your hair.
That aside, anaphylactic shock can happen, so always read and re-read the safety instructions sold with your hair dye. If you are worried about chemical dyes, switch to something more natural, or embrace grey hair gracefully. If you are concerned that you may have suffered an allergic reaction, seek medical advice. And if you already dye your hair, rest assured, anaphylactic shock when dying your hair is extremely rare.
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