During pregnancy, you’re already dealing with so many changes in your life. It starts with morning sickness and develops into swollen feet and a body that feels foreign to you.
It’s pretty safe to say that you don’t want to take any unnecessary chances right now, so sushi, alcohol, and unpasteurized cheeses are off the menu. But do you have to surrender your beauty routine? Will you really have to spend 40 weeks with your roots showing? No, you don’t.
Can you dye your hair when you’re pregnant?
Research has found that chemicals in hair dyes are not very toxic, so they’re safe to use during pregnancy. Only a small amount of hair dye is absorbed into your skin. So, it wouldn’t reach your baby and is not considered harmful. According to the American Pregnancy Association, “…the chemicals found in both semi-permanent and permanent dyes are not highly toxic and are safe to use during pregnancy. In addition, only small amounts of hair dye may be absorbed by the skin, leaving little that would be able to reach the fetus.”
How to safely dye your hair while pregnant
Yes, you can dye your hair while you’re pregnant. It’s smart to take these precautions and let your stylist know you’re pregnant.
Location
Make sure the room where you’re getting your hair dyed is well-ventilated. Ventilation is necessary if you want to dye your hair safely.
Wait until the second trimester
Thanks to those pregnancy hormones, your hair and nails will grow crazy fast when you are pregnant. So you might feel like you have to dye your hair in the first trimester.
But it’s best to hold off until your second trimester. During those first twelve weeks, your baby is going through a lot of growth and development. His or her muscles are forming, organs are growing, vocal cords are forming, and hair follicles are beginning to develop. Why take a chance?
Carefully follow the directions on the package
Don’t leave the dye on your hair any longer than the directions indicate.
Rinse hair thoroughly after dyeing hair
Use a gentler dye
Consider a semi-permanent color that doesn’t contain as many harsh chemicals as dyes that contain bleach.
Other Options Besides Traditional Hair Dye
If you don’t feel comfortable using hair dye while pregnant, there are other, safer options. You might ask your stylist to give you highlights instead of dying all of your head. Since highlights are carefully placed on only certain parts of your hair, there’s little possibility or risk of the dye ever reaching your scalp. This eliminates any chance of dye chemicals being absorbed into your bloodstream or affecting your baby in any way.
Other alternatives to consider while you’re pregnant are vegetable dyes like henna, or organic hair dyes.
If these options don’t work for you, ask your doctor for recommendations. Pregnancy can cause natural changes in your hair’s texture and how your hair reacts to dyeing. It may be less challenging to wait until after your baby is born.
Being pregnant is wonderful and scary and exciting at the same time: you deserve to feel and look your best! So indulge, but be safe with safe by following our tips on dyeing your hair without the risk of harming your baby.