How to Reduce Exposure to Toxic Chemicals

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Toxic Hair Dyes: How to Reduce Your Toxic Exposure at Home and at Your Salon

By Britta Aragon

A lot of people have been asking me about hair care lately, particularly about toxic hair dyes. What’s safe and what’s not? Why should we be concerned? What sort of salons are likely to be more health conscious?

Why Should We Be Concerned About Chemicals in Hair Dyes?
It comes down to accumulated toxic exposure. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, hair dyes contain quaternium-15, which can release formaldehyde; phenylenediamine (PPD), which may be carcinogenic; and alkylphenol ethoxylates (APEs), potential hormone disruptors. Though studies remain inconclusive overall, many have indicated that some ingredients in hair dyes can cause cancer, particularly for those who are exposed a lot, like hair dressers and stylists.

We also need to be cautious of what we apply to the scalp because it can absorb potentially harmful chemicals and transmit them into the bloodstream. A study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, for example, states, “Several studies suggest that toxic chemicals in hair products may be absorbed through the scalp in sufficient amounts to increase the risks of adverse health affects in women….”

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What’s Safe and What’s Not?

If you talk to a hair stylist about the safest method of hair coloring, most likely he or she would tell you to avoid coloring altogether. To change the color of your hair requires a chemical reaction, so it’s difficult to completely avoid any chemical exposure. There are some more natural brands of hair coloring out there, but the actual chemical difference is slight—perhaps one molecule removed from full-blown ammonia, for example. So all in all, there’s just not a 100% safe hair color out there.

The other issue is that many natural hair dyes have not received the best reviews as far as color matching and consistent results. They may have fewer harmful ingredients, but you may not be as happy with the results. This is where you must make a decision—how much risk are you comfortable taking? If you’re healthy with no auto-immune diseases or chemical sensitivities, you may feel okay about using a regular brand once in awhile. If you’re going through cancer, or if you have sensitive skin, allergies, or chemical sensitivities, you may feel differently.

Some brands may have fewer potentially harmful ingredients than others, however, and may help lower your exposure. The FDA does not regulate hair dye ingredients, so watch labels for things like ammonia, peroxide, PPDs, coal tar (though most dyes don’t contain this anymore), toluene and resorcinol. Some natural dyes to try include Aubrey Organics, pure Henna (though realize you can’t change the color on this one if you don’t like it), and NaturaTint.

Finding a Safe Salon

Once you decide how you want to approach your hair care, the next step is to find a stylist who will work with you. Some have absolutely no experience with less toxic dyes, and others are well educated about them. Tell your stylist you’re concerned about chemicals and that you prefer hair dyes that are ammonia-free, herbal-based, low-PPD, lead-free, toluene-free and coal-tar-free. Discuss how you can reduce the number of times you have to get a complete color, such as choosing highlights or lowlights in between appointments, or going with something that’s closer to your natural shade or a lighter shade (as dark hair dyes are the most toxic) and perhaps consider embracing your gray hair.

As for some specific salons that cater to chemical-conscious customers, try Aveda salons (their dyes are more natural but do still contain ammonia). Planet Thrive has some other great less toxic hair salon suggestions for different states around the nation.

Do you have some tips for cutting back on hair chemicals? Please share.

Sources

Cheryl Blackmore-Prince, et al., “Chemical Hair Treatments and Adverse Pregnancy Outcome Among Black Women in Central North Carolina,” American Journal of Epidemiology Vol 149(8): 712-716 (1999). http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/content/149/8/712.full.pdf

If you found this informative, you may also be interested in the following blog posts:

Permanent Hair Dye - ingredients
Hair Dye Allergy, Henna & Pregnancy
Organic Hair Colour - Does it Exist?
The Cosmetic use of Silicones for Hair
How to find a good shampoo

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How to find a good shampoo

Have you ever wondered if you could find a better shampoo?
One that works better? 

Often shampoo is found to become less effective over time (or possibly it wasn't effective in the first place). Do you think it's possible that a shampoo can be suited to addressing the needs of both your hair and your scalp? It would be great if we could find a shampoo which actually becomes more effective and provides greater benefits with continuous use.

STUFF that harms
The main ingredients in most shampoos (next to Water/Aqua) are Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (SLS) and/or Sodium Laureth Sulphate (SLES). They are actually known to be skin irritants:
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate - Sensitivity
Sodium Laureth Sulfate - Irritation

This would be particularly interesting to anyone with sensitive skin, prone to eczema, dermatitis or psoriasis. Some mothers are also aware that their children have more sensitive skin and can develop allergies and reactions to products with a high concentration of SLS and SLES.

Beauty traitor in your home
To start with, SLS becomes extremely alkaline (high pH) in the presence of water, and therefore highly aggressive on the hair and scalp (which favours a slightly acidic environment). On top of that, it also disrupts the natural oil balance (nature's moisturiser and skin protector) and can cause allergies, aging/dehydration, and the above-mentioned conditions especially to people exposed to regular use.

By stripping the skin of moisture,
SLS exacerbates over-active or under-active sebaceous glands
and so worsens the problems of oily or dry skin.

Though SLS is generally tolerated in accepted concentrations found in cosmetic products, it is, however, used frequently used in household products so it should not come as a surprise that one is exposed to it regularly, throughout each day, in liquid hand soap, shampoo, body wash, bubble bath, dish-washing liquid and household detergents. It is also used in beauty products and hair colouring products.

STUFF to avoid at all costs

• Formaldehyde is toxic, allergenic and carcinogenic. Why they add it to shampoo and other cosmetic products is beyond me.

STUFF that's ok..
And STUFF that helps

Apart from SLS as the predominant cleanser and foaming agent, the other ingredients in shampoo are mostly there for cosmetic purposes; to improve the texture, softness, cleansing ability and fragrance, as well as having preservative properties.

Generally, there are few ingredients which provide considerate benefit to one's body, and those ingredients are often not in a sufficient concentration to make a significant difference (If they were, shampoo would be a lot more expensive).

If you need to look for an alternative to SLS, or look for a product which uses lower proportions of SLS, look for Cocamidopropyl betaine listed before SLS, or in place of SLS in the ingredients list. It provides a similar cleansing effect but it less harsh and allergic reactions are uncommon in comparison to SLS.

A completely new and uncommon ingredient for cleansing is Zinc coceth sulphate. This can also be used in place SLS or Cocamidopropyl betaine. It is derived from Coconut and Zinc, with an acidic pH of 4.5 (similar to healthy skin and hair), it is very mild and gentle on the skin, and due to its ability to deposit zinc basic salts onto the skin, it works against dandruff. It is an excellent ingredient which effectively addresses hair cleansing and scalp care needs, simultaneously.

Now can you see how it is possible to assess a shampoo quickly and determine which is more likely to be effective and provide greater benefits with continuous use?

PH Level

Another thing to look at is pH level. Most shampoos should be somewhat acidic, ranging between 4 and 6 (or a bit lower). Unfortunately most shampoos do not actually display the pH level on the label so it's hard to distinguish them, but it is preferable to use on which is similar to the pH of healthy skin.

An acidic pH is also preferable to counteract the effect that hard water has on our hair and scalp. Hard water is quite common around the world. It contains dissolved minerals and is likely to be neutral to slightly alkali. In an alkaline environment the cuticles (outer layer) of the hair open up and expose the hair to weakening and damage. An acid shampoo can help prevent this and thus protects and maintains the hair structure


Recommendations
I use two brands of shampoo in my salon. Both are free of SLS, provide excellent results and are very popular with my clients:

• Naturalmente - It is a professional product made in Italy. It is dermatologically tested and is not tested on animals.
• African Organics - It is made from African ingredients and is also not tested on animals.

For a specific recommendation for your particular hair care and scalp needs you will need a consultation with a hair care professional. The essential oils used in these two brands (especially Naturalmente) aim to help support scalp care and hair care needs, which is why I have found them to be particularly effective and well-suited for common needs such as dry scalp, curly/dry/damaged hair, oily scalp, stimulating hair growth and preventing unnecessary hair loss.

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And my last tip for finding a good shampoo.. Remember, if it's not good for your face you shouldn't be putting it on your scalp and hair! 
I trust the products that I use to wash my hair to such a degree that I am comfortable washing my face with them! How many hair professionals can say that about the products they recommend? :)