Hair Coloring a Trend to Talk About


Hair coloring or hair dyeing is a practice of changing hair color. It was mainly practiced to cover the gray or white hair, but as time passed by, it has become a trend to color your hair to the desired color. This trend has become very popular among both men and women. Hair coloring can be professionally done by a hairdresser or independently at home.


In ancient times the dyes were obtained from plants such as henna, amla, turmeric, red ochre, black walnut hulls, and leeks. In the book, Eighteen Book of Secret of Art and Nature various methods of coloring your hair black, gold, green, red, yellow, are explained.

The development of synthetic dyes for hair was in the sixties when it was discovered how Para-Phenylenediamine (PPD) react with air. The first synthetic hair color was found by L’Oréal in 1907. In 1947 first home hair color product was released by German cosmetics firm Schwarzkopf.
Now hair dyeing is a multibillion-dollar market that includes both plant-derived and synthetic dyes.

Types of hair coloring


1. Permanent

Permanent hair color usually contains ammonia, and it must be mixed with the oxidizing agent in order to permanently change the hair color. Ammonia in permanent hair color can open the cuticle layer so that the oxidizing agent and colorants can together penetrate into the cortex. The higher the oxidizing volume, the higher the lift will be of a person’s natural hair pigment. It takes 30 to 45 minutes typically to color hair permanently.

2. Demi-permanent

Demi-permanent is a hair color which contains alkaline agent other than ammonia and will always need an oxidizing agent. Demi-permanent is much more effective at covering gray hair but less effective than permanent. The darker shade of demi-permanent might persist longer than mentioned on the packet.

3. Semi-permanent

Semi-permanent hair color involves very little or no oxidizing agent; thus, it is less damaging to hair strands. The hair color will survive typically 4-5 shampoos or for a few weeks. Before significantly fading or washing out completely. Semi-permanent hair color cannot lighten the hair.

4. Temporary color

Temporary hair color is typically more vibrant and brighter than semi-permanent and permanent hair color. The pigment present in temporary hair color have high molecular weight and hence cannot penetrate the cuticle layer. Temporary hair color can make hair excessively dry.

Side effects of hair dyeing

1. Allergic reaction

Permanent hair dyes contain PPD, which is a common allergen. It can cause itching, skin irritation, redness, or swelling on the scalp or other sensitive areas like your face and neck. Make sure never had any allergic reaction in the past because the next time you use it; you might have even adverse allergic reaction than previous.

2. Over-processing


Permanent hair color contains ammonia and peroxide, which effectively damage your hair. Using hair coloring products over and over will make you lose your hair luster they will break easily. The best to get rid of the damage is to chop your hair off


3. Effects on fertility

Lead acetate is one of the common ingredient used in permanent hair color. Scientific evidences prove it can affect the fertility in male and female. Also pregnant women should not use any kind of hair dye as it can cause malignancy in their unborn infant.

4. Up keep

The chemicals that are present in the hair dye make your hair vulnerable to damage and demand a lot of patience and care hence, and you need to buy formulated for hair color because if you fail to give your hair what it needs, it will result in a lock that lack shine, luster, and health.

5. Conjunctivitis


Failing to take extreme cautions while dying your hair can result in the chemicals coming in contact with the sensitive part of your skin. In some cases, your eyes and it can lead to conjunctivitis or pink eye, and in some cases, it can also cause inflammation and severe discomfort.



6. Asthma


The persulfate present in hair dye aggravates asthma continue inhalation of these chemicals can lead to coughing, wheezing, inflammation, and also asthma attack.




7. Cancer

When first permanent hair dyes were introduced, they had compounds which were carcinogenic. Later it was altered to replace those chemicals. Now, scientific research and studies are yet to discover the link between carcinogenic compounds and new hair dye products.

Precaution while Coloring Your Hair

• Try to avoid using permanent hair color. Opt for semi or demi-permanent hair color as it contains fewer chemicals as compare to permanent hair color.

• Always first conduct a test on patch or a strand of hair this will help you avoid a possible allergic reaction

• Prefer coloring your hair by hair dresser cause some things can go wrong while doing it on your own.

• Always color your hair in a well-lit, well-ventilated area; otherwise, it can cause eye or nasal irritation.

• Research about the hair dye and then use the product from a trusted brand that does not use any harmful chemicals

• The many are to switch to natural hair dyeing alternative

1) Coffee/ tea
2) Food color
3) Beet and carrot juice
4) Henna
5) Lemon and honey

Hair Dye Market Key Players

• Henkel
• Kao Corporation
• L’Oréal
• Coty
• Avon Products
• Combe
• Conair
• Estée Lauder Companies
• Godrej Consumer Products
• Revlon
• Shiseido Company


I agree the new trends are enticing, and everyone wants to follow them, so should you; however, a bit of awareness about the product we use won’t hurt anyone. As far as it concerns to hair dye or hair color you can pay attention to the chemicals that are used in it and research which chemicals are harmful and avoid using it a lot. Try to take adequate care of your hair after you have colored them. If possible, use natural hair dyes.


1. What is hair color?

A product that helps to change the color of your hair as you desire is called as hair color or hair dye.

2. Is hair color colour harmful?

Yes, hair color can be harmful but with proper precautions we might be able able to avoid the side effects

3. Is there any other alternate to color your hair without using chemical based hair color?

Yes, there is you can use natural hair dyeing products such as henna, coffe/tea, food colors and lemon and honey.

About the author

Abbie Lowe

Abbie is handling the bakery section of the website. She is one of the youngest and most energetic person in the office. She is very cheerful, and apart from her childish nature, her most significant advantage is the limitless amount of knowledge she has of the field and her command over English. She has been on board with us for 3 years now.

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