Science reveals whether dying your hair is actually harmful to your health

Dyeing hair is part of life. Often a lot of chemicals are used for this, the number of herbal hair dyes is still small. And also dyeing accidents are commonplace, especially if you dye your own hair at home. It is often assumed that dyeing hair is carcinogenic. We clarify whether this is true.

No general cancer risk, but there are exceptions

Dyeing hair does not carry a general risk of cancer, as a wide-ranging U.S. study found. However, the original hair color is also important here. Thus, it was found that there is an increased risk of Hodgkin's lymphoma in women with darker hair and basal cell carcinoma in women with lighter hair.

In addition, the researchers found an association of dyeing and a risk of hormone receptor-negative breast cancer and ovarian cancer. In addition, severe allergies can be triggered by chemical hair dyes. In the EU, however, there are regulations so that at least carcinogenic substances should not be contained in the dyes.

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What are the alternatives?

Tints are one of the healthier alternatives, because they can be washed out and do not penetrate the hair structure. But in return, the colour goes away faster. Those who do not want to give up coloring can also use natural dyes, among which are chamomile, henna and indigo. They act as a protective film and even nourish the hair. Through natural means, however, the color intensity is not so strong and the hair color can not be lightened.

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This article has been translated from Gentside DE.

Sources used:

Today: Red, brown, blue! Hair dyes are really that harmful

ProSieben: How harmful is hair coloring and tinting really for your hair?

RND: The main thing, beautiful: Is hair coloring actually unhealthy?

Medical University of Vienna: Hair dyeing and cancer risk: largest study to date