Hair Dye and Pregnancy

During pregnancy, women are advised not to get exposed to chemicals or fumes. This is because certain chemicals tend to interfere with the biochemical reactions that occur during fetal development and may cause birth defects or genetic defects in the unborn baby. There are hundreds of women who use hair dye to make themselves beautiful. So when they get pregnant, the question that comes to their mind, "is it safe to dye hair during pregnancy?". It is difficult to answer this question simply because there is no concrete evidence that can suggest any connection between hair dye and pregnancy.

Effects of Hair Dye During Pregnancy

When you use hair dye, a small amount of hair dye may get absorbed into the skin. However, this amount is small enough to cause any harm to the development of the baby. Studies have been carried out on animals where hair dyes of much stronger dose have been used on them but no birth defects has been found in their babies. So the conclusion drawn from this research is that hair care products cannot be held responsible for such health problems.

However, a few studies do indicate that there is a possibility of neuroblastoma (a form of cancer in children) or brain tumors in the newborn baby. In one such study, rodents were fed with hair dyes that contain two coal tar ingredients and it was found that they were at higher risk of cancer. Though the risk of application of these components on the skin was evaluated. For this reason, FDA had proposed that warnings should be given on the labels of those hair dyes that contains such ingredients. So, many manufacturers stopped using those ingredients in hair dyes and they are safe for use in pregnancy. Still, there are some who replaced them with new compounds that had similar composition and hence, should be avoided.

Tips for Coloring Hair in Pregnancy

As research on the relation between hair dye and pregnancy is inconclusive, it is always advisable to be on the safe side. For this reason, it will be better to avoid hair dye during the first trimester. In this period, all the vital organs of your baby are formed. So you should postpone your hair coloring till the second trimester when your baby is less vulnerable to any kind of developmental disorder. Here are some tips that you should follow while coloring hair in pregnancy:

• While applying the hair color, care should be taken that it does not comes in direct contact with the scalp. Moreover, do not use any single-process color as they reach up to the hair roots.
• Instead of using hair dye that contain synthetic chemical agents, use vegetable dyes like henna. They are considered as harmless even during pregnancy. Make sure you read the label of the product carefully before buying them in order to ensure that it contains natural substances only.
• Temporary color is the best during this time as they are nontoxic. They are applied with the help of a hair pencil or hair mascara wand and will stay on your hair only till you shampoo your hair.
• Highlights is another options available for you. The advantage of highlighting the hair is that the color is not being applied to the scalp and thus you can prevent absorption of the chemicals into the blood.
• After application of hair dye, rinse the hair thoroughly so that no residue of the hair color is left behind in the hair.

Since probable association between hair dye and pregnancy cannot be ruled out completely, you should always take the advise of your health care provider before you go for any such hair treatment. Lastly, another thing I would like to share with you is that many women prefer to avoid hair dye during the first three months of pregnancy as they themselves feel nauseous after inhaling the fumes.