Did you know the United States only partially bans 30 chemicals from use in personal care products? That’s it…30. Conversely, over the last two decades, the European Union has made strides by banning almost 1,400 chemicals from personal products. Cosmetics are, therefore, wildly unregulated in the United States because a major federal law to ensure the safety of such products has not been passed since 1938. (1) So what does that mean for something as popular as hair dye? Many women use hair dye products – whether they’re looking to make a wild change to their appearance or wanting to hide those graying roots coming in.

The ‘Sister Study’

Fast forward to December 2019 to the publication of the ‘Sister Study’ in the International Journal of Cancer. Women between the ages of 35 – 74 were enrolled in the study between 2003 and 2009. It’s dubbed the ‘Sister Study’ because researchers studied women who were cancer-free but had a sister with breast cancer. The results of the study were startling. Of the 46,709 women in the study, black women who used permanent dyes saw a 45% higher associated risk of breast cancer, and white women saw a 7% higher risk. All participants showed a higher risk of breast cancer if they used a chemical relaxer or straightener; and, the more frequent the use, the higher the risk. The researchers concluded, “These results suggest that chemicals in hair products may play a role in breast carcinogenesis.” (2)

Results Interpreted

Now, you may be wondering why black women had such a drastically higher increase in risk than white women in the ‘Sister Study.’ Well, according to the American Cancer Society, darker hair dyes contain more of the chemicals that may be responsible for causing cancer. Because black women typically use darker dyes than white women, this could explain why their associated risk increased more than their white counterparts. (3)

There are over 5,000 different chemicals that can be found in commercial hair dyes. Some of these chemicals are known carcinogens in animals. Furthermore, studies over the years indicate an increased risk of bladder cancer in hairdressers and barbers. This could be correlated to the chemicals they are exposed to at their job. As noted above, the FDA hardly regulates what goes into personal care products like hair dye. This means that the safety and reliability of products is the responsibility of the manufacturer. (4) This is scary for two reasons. First, it means there is no oversight, recourse, motivation, or external need to provide safe products to consumers. Second, manufacturers may not even be aware of the potential danger the chemicals in their products pose. 

What’s Being Done

The findings for chemicals in hair dye raising cancer risk for people was enough to get the European Commission involved all the way back in 2001. The European Commission is the platform responsible for drafting European Union legislation. They ended up withdrawing their support from hair dye products all throughout Europe based on the notion that there was no substantial evidence to support the safety of hair dyes. They had specific concerns, and have since warned against the use of the chemical para-phenylenediamine, or PPD, which is commonly used in hair dye. (4, 5)

If there is such substantiated concern over the use of so many potentially harmful chemicals on your body, why take the risk?

Alternatives To Commercial Hair Dye

Luckily in this day and age where natural alternatives to commercial products are such a widespread trend, hair dye also has alternative options that are safer and not nearly as chemical-ridden as most products on the market. There are also things like carrot juice, beet juice, henna, coffee, lemon juice, coffee, sage, and chamomile tea that can also help add some color to your hair. (6) Find a few natural options that seem appealing to you and see how they take to your hair. You just might love what you find!