It has been documented throughout history that women struggled to achieve blonde locks with bad results. Highly alkaline soaps were used on the hair and then the women would sit in the sun for lengthy periods of time to bleach it. Another way was to powder the hair with pollen and crushed yellow flower petals. They even utilized expensive wigs made from imported blonde hair from the Netherlands. It was not until 1907, that a French chemist named Eugene Schueller started making hair dye in his Paris apartment. He called his company L’Oreal, which is still a leader in its field today.

Some of the first home hair dyes emerged on the market back in the 1950’s, when a mere 10% of all women dyed their hair. When the media mesmerized the public by telling us that “blonds had more fun”, the ranks of hair-dyers mushroomed to the point where today, 50% of the women in this country color their hair—and most of them for over 10 years.



Hair Dye Health Risks

For the longest time, there was no information that would evoke any fear, so health problems never crossed our minds. In 2003, however, a study from the University of Southern California, published in the International Journal of Cancer, found otherwise. It presented evidence that women using hair dye at least once a month for a year or more doubled their chances of bladder cancer, while those who used dye for at least 15 years more than tripled their risk. Within that particular study, researchers found no amplified risk for people that utilized semi-permanent or temporary dyes, which depend on much lower concentrations of chemicals.

A later scrutinized look at the above study showed even more of a downside—some women react more poorly to hair dye than others. “Women whose bodies only slowly flush out certain carcinogenic ingredients had a higher risk of bladder cancer than more efficient flushers,” says USC researchers and lead study author Manuela Gago-Dominguez, whose finding was presented at the 2002’s American Association for Cancer Research meeting. Roughly 50% of the Caucasians in the United States have challenging slow-flushing genes, she said. It is interesting that prior research on bladder cancer and hair dye did not find a link, however, researchers now believe that one likely answer is bladder cancer’s time taken to rear its ugly head. While a good number of cancers show up 15 to 20 years after contact to a carcinogen, bladder cancer most often does not show up for 30 years, says Sheila Zahm, an epidemiologist at the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

FDA Regulations

How many of you are aware that hair dyes are not regulated by the FDA for safety? But—in the mid-1970’s, the National Cancer Institute discovered that rodents fed certain coal-tar chemicals located in dark hair dyes were more apt to develop cancer. When the FDA was alerted, they proposed a warning label on any dyes that had these compounds. Well, the industry decided, instead, to change the formulations. Unfortunately, researchers are doubtful that the petroleum-derived chemicals utilized instead of the coal tar compounds are any better. In addition, other possible cancer-causing chemicals, such as paraphenylenediamine (PPD), are still present in the formula.

What’s more, the National Cancer Institute has discovered a connection between hair dyes, especially dark ones, and the group of cancers that impact blood and lymph nodes, such as non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and multiple myeloma. The National Cancer Institute and Yale are mutually conducting more studies that Zahm anticipates will be more concrete.



The Problem

A portion of the dilemma falls upon the chemicals that swell the outermost covering of the hair shaft so the color can infuse the hair. This swelling is called oxidation and is generated by mixing hydrogen peroxide with ammonia. Yale University researcher, Tongzhan Zheng says this combination may create potentially carcinogenic chemicals that don’t normally exist in the two liquids prior to mixing them together. Lastly, the darker dyes are more challenging as they contain greater levels of chemicals.



So Now What Do We Do?

You are probably wondering what we are all supposed to do if we want to wash our gray away. Well, if you dye your hair every six weeks like most women, you may want to alter your habit, especially if you are one of those who utilize a permanent dark dye. You could:

• Using a semi-permanent color
• Permanent highlights
• Go blonde

All of the above would expose you to fewer chemicals, but the best case scenario would be natural hair-coloring alternatives that have a much lower risk and give your hair body and shine. The natural hair dyes include plant-based ingredients and use aloe for moisturizing, coconut for conditioning and very few, if any, petroleum-derived chemicals than permanent dyes. Then there is henna, which has no chemicals at all! The only downside that I see with the natural approach is that the fewer chemicals a dye possesses, the less effectively it alters hair color or covers the gray. The upside is that you are lowering your risk for health problems and that is a no brainer for me. I opted for the henna approach and figured that if Cleopatra and Nefertiti used it, I was in good company. Besides, I love the fact that it gives my hair extra fullness, body and shine!



Natural Hair Dyes

These products contain an assortment of different proteins and herbs and coloring agents. A few are permanent such as Naturtint and Herbatint, while others such as Vegetal, Naturcolor and Clairol Natural Instincts are semi-permanent. You will have to experiment to see which of the above will work for you, but these products have fewer synthetic chemicals than standard dyes and no ammonia, so you avoid the potentially harmful oxidation process. Unfortunately, some of the above still contain some of the same problematic chemicals used in the conventional dyes—p-phenylenediamine, hydrogen peroxide and resorcinol. Although the amount of chemicals is of a lesser degree and may be less hazardous, there are still no facts to back this up.

These products act by coating the hair shaft with botanical extracts such as blackberry, boysenberry, licorice root, chaparral, nettle, red sorrel, black walnut and other color pigments. The above botanicals coat, rather than penetrate the hair shaft, plus they give the hair more shine and make it feel thicker and fuller. The coating action may also aid in protecting the hair from environmental elements such as sun, salt, chlorine and assorted pollutants. In addition, vegetable-based rinses have been tested for safety and contain the least amount of synthetic chemicals of any hair dyes.



Henna—The Harmless Way To Color Your Hair

Let’s get one thing straight about henna. It is not going to turn you from a raven-haired bombshell into a fair-haired beauty. In other words, it will not lighten your hair. The good news is that this botanical dye lasts four to six weeks, which is longer than a vegetable rinse and adds a wonderful shine, highlights and bounce to your hair. Henna products are not always a red color; however, all henna contains and imparts a tad of red (even the natural). The henna I use is made from the leaves, roots and stems of the lawsonia plant and is not only gluten free but animal cruelty free. It is super for those of you who are chemical sensitive and also the environmentally conscious. You can purchase the henna that I use at Morrocco Method below, and they have quite an array of colors to choose from. When using henna, you will be advised not to use anything metal in the process of mixing. Please pay particular attention to the directions, as using any metal in the process, may turn your hair green.