Can You Color Your Hair While You’re Pregnant?

This subject may very well be the most debated pregnancy-related topic, as I have yet to hear or find any 100% conclusive evidence on hair dying and its effect on the fetus. In fact, this rumor spreads like wildfire via the internet and email about 10 years ago and there is really no evidence whatsoever to support it. But before you go and grab that bottle of bleach, consider this:

Permanent hair color contains many chemicals including ammonia which produces adverse effects if inhaled, ingested, or comes in contact with skin. Not only are you inhaling ammonia while dying your hair, but it also is present on your scalp and is being absorbed into your skin. The skin does have a protective layer that can help filter out some of the “bad stuff” we are subjected to during hair dyeing; however, the jury is still out on how much is filtered out and how much ends up in the placenta.

Why risk it?

This leads me to ask, why take the risk? Long term studies have not been performed on the affects of hair dying and your unborn child, so why not give your hair a bit of a rest during those 9.5 months?

Answer: vanity. I’m not pointing any fingers here; in fact, as someone who routinely bleaches her hair, I set about immediately seeking ways to reduce the risks of ANY complications arising from my hair dyeing activities. Here are some ideas for us ladies who want to keep up with our hair routine during pregnancy:

A streaky solution

Consider streaks instead of full-color. Streaks go a long way in covering up any “roots” that are showing for us women with full-colored hair. I actually enjoyed a different look for my hair during my pregnancy, so the streaks were a great alternative.

Avoid permanent hair color and go with semi-permanent. Semi-permanent hair colors are far less likely to contain ammonia and other hazardous chemicals. The color does wash out within 6 weeks time, which I found frustrating, but hey – remind yourself that you are doing it for the health of your baby.

Go lighter

Go lighter rather than darker! There is some evidence out there which suggests that darker hair colors prove to be more hazardous to our health than lighter, bleaching colors. Perhaps now is the time to get that bleached blonde beach babe look!

A word of caution

One word of caution if you do decide to dye your hair while pregnant: Pregnancy often leaves a woman’s hair dull and frail as the nutrients in her body are going straight to her baby. Dyeing during this time leaves your hair at a greater risk of breakage or discoloration due to hormonal changes. So if your hair color is looking a bit “off” or if more of it seems to be “falling” out and breaking off, don’t be too surprised.

Putting this in perspective here, the make up that we wear on a daily basis can very well be doing more harm than a once-every-six-weeks habit. What is most important here is that you read all you can on the subject and form your own decisions before deciding to dye.

And hey – it’s not so bad letting your natural shade shine through for a while! If you’re like me, you may have even forgotten what your natural hair color truly is. Re-acquaint yourself with you, au naturel!