Allergy to Organic Hair Dye
Products marketed as organic don't always contain all-natural, hypoallergenic and environmentally friendly ingredients. The USDA guidelines help consumers distinguish hair dyes so they have a better chance of avoiding allergic reactions.
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Chemical Dyes
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Permanent hair dyes use harsh chemicals like peroxide, ammonia and paraphenylenediamine (PPD), which work with oxygen by lightening natural hair pigmentation and adding a new color that combines with natural pigment, according to HairDyeInfo.com.
What Organic Really Means
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USDA guidelines require manufacturers to label products "100% organic," "organic" or "made with organic ingredients" to differentiate levels of organic integrity set by the government. The "100%" and "organic" hair dyes contain at least 95-percent organic ingredients and "made with" dyes contain less.
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How Organic Dye Works
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According to Hubpages.com, permanent hair dyes " made with" still contain PPD, ammonia and peroxide, the chemicals most likely to cause allergic reactions. Semi-permanent organic dyes contain little to none of these toxic ingredients and add botanicals, herbs and oils to help protect the scalp and promote healthy growth.
Allergic Reactions
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Because some "organic" dyes are not fully natural and hypoallergenic, the scalp and skin may react to contact. According to NaturalNews.com, PPD is the most dangerous of the hair dye allergens, causing dermatitis of the eyes, ears, scalp and face, and rashes, swelling and burning sensations on the scalp.
Prevent Reactions
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Next to avoiding all hair dyes, traditional and "organic," a dye user can lessen the chance of allergic reaction by conducting an allergy test 48 hours before applying dye to the hair, as instructed by the manufacturer.
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References
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- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Amanda
