Can Hair Dye cause allergies and if so, how can I prevent it from happening to me?

Question: Can Hair Dye cause allergies and if so, how can I prevent it from happening to me?

Answer: That’s a very good question; yes, hair dyes have been known to cause allergies to some people. In the twenty five years or so that I have been personally giving that chemical process to my clients, I can tell you honestly that I have only come across an allergic reaction caused by a hair dye a few times. These hair dye allergy were relatively minor and it usually went away after a couple of days. It involved some itching and redness, sometimes a little swelling and discomfort around the ears and scalp. Some of the more severe cases involved hair loss, burning, raw skin, swelling of the face and difficulty breathing but like I told you, I have never personally seen that with any of my clients.

Hair dye allergy is exactly the reason why a patch test is recommended before the application. With a patch test you can determine with out a doubt what your reaction to the hair dye will be.

A patch test is performed by dabbing a little swab of hair dye fully mixed with the developer or the peroxide as some people call it, on the back of your ear or on the crease of you arm in front of your elbow. You should leave the test smudge on for at least twenty four hours. If nothing happens (such as any of the signs you just read about) than I would say go for it, because chances are you’re probably not allergic at all to the ingredients of the hair dye.

Safety Tips:

• Follow the directions in the package. Pay attention to all “Caution” and “Warning” statements.

• Do a patch test before using dye on your hair. Here’s how: Rub a tiny bit of the dye on the inside of your elbow or behind your ear. Leave it there for two days. If you get a rash, don’t use the dye on your hair. You should do the test each time you dye your hair. (Salons should also do the patch test before dyeing your hair.)

• Never dye your eyebrows or eyelashes. This can hurt your eyes. You might even go blind. FDA does not allow using hair dyes on eyelashes and eyebrows.

• Keep hair dyes out of the reach of children.

• Don’t leave the dye on longer than the directions say you should.

• Rinse your scalp well with water after dyeing.

• Wear gloves when you apply the hair dye.

• Never mix different hair dye products. This can hurt your hair and scalp.

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