Hair color to dye for: the good, the bad and the ugly on natural cover-ups

Vegetarian Times, Sept, 1998 by Laurie Berger

When pressed, experts ranging from the FDA to the manufacturers themselves admit that few "natural" hair dyes, if any, are 100 percent natural. In fact, a quick label scan of some popular health store brands reveals that most contain two FDA-reviewed carcinogens: 4-methoxy-m-phenylenediamine (4-MMPD) and 4-methoxy-m-phenylenediamine sulphate (4-MMPD sulphate), as well as other chemicals generally believed to be harmful, including: Resorcinol, O-Aminophenol, Ethan-olamine, Propylene Glycol, Nonoxynol. John Corbett, Ph.D., vice president of the CTFA's scientific and technical affairs committee, says, "If a natural product contains words like amino, nitro or phenyl or names of colors starting with the letters HC, the product is not natural."

But not everybody is convinced of the dangers. New York-based Christopher Mackin, one of the country's top three tricologists (hair and scalp specialist), argues that the risks of natural hair color are minimum at best. Mackin, who studied in Germany with Schwartzkopf, Europe's premier hair and skin manufacturer, and with the Phillip Kingsley Tricology Clinic in New York, says, "I put my reputation on the line by saying that products calling themselves natural are pretty safe. If you lead a healthy lifestyle, have a good diet and a good genetic profile, 3 percent peroxide--about the max a natural permanent hair dye contains--won't hurt. In my opinion, the only way dye will get into your body is if your scalp has an allergic reaction and dyes penetrate your bloodstream. Plus, think about it: Cigarettes come with warning labels from the Surgeon General. Hair dye? No warning label required.

"My advice is to check the label carefully," Macklin continues. "You want less than 10 percent peroxide because more than that will go into the cuticle. Also, look for phrases like `not damaging to hair' and ingredients you recognize as naturally based, such as rosemary and birchwood. And go with a well-known brand."

On the label-checking front, keep in mind the words of National Cancer Institute's Sheila Zahn: "Based on what we now know, natural hair dyes are a safer choice. But avoid products with coal tar, which has been found to contain human carcinogens."

LESS IS MORE

Natural dyes that mix plant pigments with some chemical fixatives are a good compromise for women who want lasting color, without the chemical overload of synthetic dyes. On a toxicity scale of one to 10, with 10 representing the highest level of chemical content, these products rate between six and nine. They contain the same kinds of ingredients used in synthetic hair color--just less of them. They offer a wide selection of reliable colors that typically last four to six weeks.

"The closer you come to your natural color, the longer you can go," says Banda. "In general, you should touch your roots up every month, and re-dye the whole head every second or third time, depending on how faded the color is." Because these dyes contain developer, they're effective at hiding gray. Compare labels, however, since chemical content varies from product to product.