Dying Hair While Pregnant. Can I or Can’t I
A lot of controversy tends to surround the topic of whether or not you can dye your hair while you are pregnant. As a vast majority of women do use some sort of hair dyeing or hair coloring product on their hair, it comes to no surprise that the question as to whether or not you can be dying hair while pregnant has come up several times.
A lot of controversy tends to surround the topic of whether or not you can dye your hair while you are pregnant.
To make things all the more confusing, there seems to be conflicting answers to this question, which only bewilders pregnant women all the more! One of the reasons for this is that there have not been a lot of studies performed that monitor the effects of hair dyeing on an unborn fetus, never mind the effects of hair dyeing while pregnant and its potential long term effects. That being said, these same professionals also tend to agree that dyeing your hair while pregnant will not affect their baby in any way and babies born to women who have dyed their hair while pregnant are normal and in good health.
But here’s the flipside argument: as there haven’t been many studies done on this topic, no one really knows if dyeing your hair while pregnant is a good idea. Your doctor will very well tell you to lay of the hair dyeing while pregnant as the dye itself is still absorbed through your skin, and therefore can be passed to your unborn baby through the placenta.
Doctors will advise you to be particularly cautious of dyeing your hair throughout the baby’s first trimester in the womb, as these first three months are when the baby’s neurological functions are developing. Your doctor may then allow you to dye your hair during the second and third trimester.
Beauty is important, and maintaining your appearance is key to many things in your life. If you do choose to use a box color at home, choose the box color with the least amount of chemicals in it. Work in a large, well ventilated space (open all windows and turn on a fan facing outwards from the room), wear gloves, and try to really limit any chemical exposure in any way you can.
There are also some hair coloring alternatives you can choose. One easy way is if you are planning on getting pregnant, dye your hair back to your “normal” hair color and enjoy having your natural hair back throughout your pregnancy!
Not a big fan of that idea? Then consider highlights. Rather than coloring your whole head, you can highlight small bits and pieces of your hair to still maintain your look and keep it fresh. Highlights will also help accent your pregnancy “glow”, and consider how highlighting one’s hair never brings the dye to one’s scalp. Highlighting is all about dying hair that is up to an inch away from your scalp, so your skin never actually absorbs any dyes.
As a final option, try switching to semi-permanent dyes. These are particularly useful when trying to transition back to your natural hair color. Semi-permanent dyes are safer as they contain far less chemicals. Try to choose a dye that has no ammonia and no peroxide where possible.
