If you think there are scientific or medical studies proving that hair dyes cause miscarriages or birth defects, you’re wrong. But neither is their reliable data to indicate that using hair dyes during pregnancy is safe. In that case, it’s better to be safe than sorry, right? With that in place, you should know what is the best safe hair dye for pregnancy.
Hair dyes, more often than not, are packed with a lot of chemicals. And some of these chemicals have carcinogenic properties. So, as a responsible parent-to-be, you should keep away from such dyes at the time of pregnancy.
Just the possibility of something being dangerous for your fetus is reason enough to avoid it completely. If you agree with me, then you might want to have a look at the top 9 pregnancy safe hair dye brands I’ve shortlisted below.
The 9 Best Safe Hair Dye for Pregnancy
1. Hannah Natural 100% Pure Henna Powder
Every list of pregnancy safe hair dye should include 100% chemical-free and all-natural herbal henna. This Hannah Natural Pure Henna Powder has only one ingredient. And that is 100% pure henna leaves. Pure henna is also a very effective hair conditioner just so you know.
Needless to say, the henna powder produces an absolutely gorgeous looking color. The trick is to mix the henna powder with a little bit of lemon juice if you don’t want the color to fade anytime soon. You can add some turmeric powder and honey too. With warm water, these three 3 ingredients turn into a thick, yogurt-like texture.
For application, follow the instructions provided to you by Hannah Natural. Just remember that the results take the form of complete gray coverage. Natural hair colors like these are not only safe during pregnancy but also less harmful for your hair in comparison to chemical-laden hair dyes.
2. Onc Natural Colors Healthier Permanent Hair Color
Using an ammonia free hair color during pregnancy is safe and certainly not frowned upon. In that case, you might want to try out ONC NATURALCOLORS. The brand offers a whole spectrum of healthier permanent hair dyes. And all of them give you a long-lasting smooth and soft texture with complete gray coverage, including this hazelnut brown hair color.
No amount of harsh smells is included. Only certified organic ingredients have been used to make the experience safer and healthier.ens up the scalp pores. And when that happens, the hair dye and its harsh chemicals enter those pores, thus drifting into your bloodstream. But with ONC
Speaking of which, the hair dye has a low pH level. When the pH level is high, as in the case of chemical-packed hair colors, it ope, the low pH opens the cuticles just enough for the color to enter.
No ammonia, no parabens, no nonoxynol, no silicone, and no resorcinol. This formulation is protein-based, gentle, and salon-quality. As for what’s included, there are certified organic chamomile, argan oil, Vitamins E and C, aloe vera, coconut oil, comfrey, and orange extracts. As you can see, only natural stuff and no chemicals.
3. Garnier Olia Ammonia Free Permanent Hair Color
Garnier’s hair colors are definitely the talk of the town. But is Garnier hair color safe during pregnancy? This ammonia-free version truly is. The permanent hair color contains natural flower oils.
The oil-powered technology here propels the color, or colors since you can mix two colors at once, of your choice deep into your hair. And that too without any ammonia going in there. The results are certainly vivid, pure, and long-lasting.
What Garnier Olia also does is improve and restore the condition of your hair. The natural flower oils added to the formula reverse dullness and roughness. So the hair color looks more brilliant. In comparison to uncolored, unwashed hair, your dyed hair is more likely to look and feel silkier, shinier, and hydrated. That’s the beauty of Garnier.
Gray coverage, needless to say, is 100%. And you get many color options to choose from. As for this Light Natural Auburn, it creates the perfect blend of gold and copper tones. And is perfect for those that have natural hair anywhere between dark brown and dark blonde.
The smell of the hair color is not very strong in case you’re wondering. Along the same lines, the permanent hair dye doesn’t even burn. On top of that, the Garnier Olia offers the desired coverage for the most stubborn gray hair as well.
4. Herbatint Permanent Herbal Haircolor Gel
Ever heard of the Italian hair color company, Herbatint? They’re based in Rome and they manufacture natural hair dyes and other hair care products using only the highest quality ingredients. So if you’re looking for a pregnant safe hair dye, it’s only logical for me to offer a Herbatint hair color to you.
This herbal gel consists of certified organic herbal extracts. With no synthetic fragrances, phthalates, sulfates, and parabens. There are no artificial colors and harmful preservatives either. On top of that, all Herbatint hair products are cruelty-free.
As for the formulation, it contains herbal extracts like walnut husk, cinchona, and rosemary. These deposit the color gently into your hair. The outcome is nothing but vibrant, natural permanently dyed hair without any damage. Let me also point out that it’s ammonia-free.
At the time of rinsing out your hair, please don’t be alarmed by seeing the greenish water color. That is completely normal. There’s no doubt you’ll be happy with the shade. It covers all gray areas quite flawlessly. But it’s the fact that “more natural” ingredients are used that matters the most here, doesn’t it?
5. Naturtint Permanent Hair Color
For vegan mothers-to-be, this is the ultimate solution to your safe hair dyeing worries. The Naturtint Permanent Hair Color has a very low content of chemicals. Plus, it’s got no ammonia, resorcinol, and parabens. Plus, it’s a plant-enriched formulation that takes care of 100% gray coverage. So many benefits!
The best part about Naturtint is that it doesn’t give rise to any serious or mild allergic reactions. Unlike those popular mainstream brands that you might have been using all your life. When compared to any ammonia-based hair dye, this ammonia-free formula colors as well as them. In fact, the dyeing part is much healthier and doesn’t cause any hair damage in the process.
You might also appreciate their sulfate-free shampoo for neutralizing and effectively cleansing off the dye. Along with the creamy conditioner that softens your hair and eliminates the odor of the dye. If you ask me, it’s the perfect package for pregnant women or women living a vegan lifestyle.
6. Clairol Natural Instincts Brass Free Hair Color
The question is pretty straightforward; what is the best hair dye to use during pregnancy? And the answer should be equally straightforward, don’t you think? It’s the Clairol Natural Instincts Brass Free Hair Color. And why is it the best? Because the formulation consists of a unique combination of coconut and aloe. So this hair dye is actually bound to improve the condition of your hair.
It’s a semi-permanent hair color packed with antioxidants. The color takes form in only 10 minutes, which is great news for those who don’t have much time or patience for the process. As for how long it lasts, around 28-30 shampoos.
The hair color blends away your grays very gently. What’s included though? There’s the hair dye, ColorFresh Revitalizer, and Color Treat. The revitalizer is a rich conditioning crème. And what the thing does is add color pigments back into your hair 14 days after coloring. As for the Color Treat conditioner, it activates hair radiance.
In my opinion, it’s the best safe semi-permanent hair dye to use during pregnancy.
7. Revlon ColorSilk Haircolor
Revlon, much like Garnier, is a brand name synonymous with permanent hair dyes. So here is their ammonia-free version suitable for pregnant women. The Revlon ColorSilk Haircolor has no ammonia and is packed with keratin. And you and I both know the wonderful hair benefits of keratin.
Revlon assures 100% gray coverage. The formula contains nourishing silk proteins for leaving your hair in a better condition in comparison to what they looked like before coloring.
But what is so special about Revlon here? Why should you take the Revlon ColorSilk into consideration to even begin with? It’s because the brand makes use of exclusive 3D Color Gel technology. This produces natural hair color with dimension. On top of that, UV defense is also a part of the deal. So your new natural-looking shade stays true and glossy.
Hair looks so silky-soft, shiny, and gorgeous that you’re bound to recommend Revlon to everyone you know interested in dyeing hair. Pregnant or not!
8. L’Oreal Inoa Ammonia Free Permanent Hair Color
There’s no denying that L’Oreal requires no introduction. Every hair product manufactured by the giant brand is made using not only effective but also the highest quality ingredients. And the L’Oreal Inoa Ammonia Free Permanent Hair Color is no different. It’s the perfect choice for moms-to-be. Thanks to the ammonia-free quality of the hair dye.
You get access to 100% white hair coverage. The hair color lasts for as long as six weeks. And during these six weeks, intense nutrition and hydration are also a part of your hair.
Like you already know, no ammonia is used. Along with no artificial, strong, or harsh fragrances! Only optimized scalp and hair comfort. Expect your colored hair to shine way more than it did when it was not colored.
The Inoa formulation is very gentle on the hair, no two ways about that. So even if you’re paying more, you know your money is being spent wisely.
9. Aveda Full Spectrum Protective Permanent Pure Tone Haircolor
It’s time for the final pick on the list, which is Aveda Full Spectrum Protective Permanent Hair Color. I like the words “full spectrum” used in the product title. Even the word “protective” seems reassuring. After all, the hair dye consists of a blend of plant oils like jojoba, castor, and sunflower.
The color your hair acquires in the process looks simply irresistible. Packed with shine, no doubt, Aveeda hair dye pregnancy hair color even resists fading. The natural, ammonia-free formula infuses your hair with a gorgeous shine. Expect no hair damage along the way.
Now you don’t need to pay a big sum of money just to get your hair professionally dyed in a salon. On top of that, this Aveda hair color doesn’t even contain the harsh chemicals found in products often used in salons. It’s a complete win-win situation.
Pregnancy and Hair Dye
What you use on your body and hair matters as much as what you eat during pregnancy. Because everything that affects you, your skin, and your body affects your growing fetus.
Just like excessive lead exposure at the time of pregnancy gives rise to conditions such as miscarriage, reduced birth weight, and preterm delivery, exposure to high levels of chemicals found in hair dyes is also not safe. This is the same as eating a lot of high-mercury fish, which can cause nervous system problems in your baby.
Now let me tell you the truth about hair dyes, toxins, and pregnancy. To be honest, hair colors, permanent or semi-permanent, are not necessarily dangerously toxic during pregnancy. There’s no scientific or medical proof of that.
Nevertheless, it’s not a 100% safe hair product to use at the time of pregnancy either. A small amount of it might touch your skin on the scalp or forehead. This means the chances of the chemicals entering your bloodstream are likely. Even though a small amount, don’t think that it won’t have a negative impact on your developing baby.
How to Color Hair Safely
Let’s say you decide to dye your hair to get rid of your gray areas during the 9 months of pregnancy. Or just to give your hair a transformation!
Whatever the case, here are a few precautions you might want to keep in mind along the way.
Wait till the Second Trimester
Most pregnant women know that hair grows faster during pregnancy. This explains the desire to head to the salon for more frequent root touch-ups. So if you want to minimize the chances of causing harm to the growing human inside you, go for these touch-ups or do them at home on your own only after 3 months of your pregnancy.
This is when you enter your second trimester. Rapid development and growth take place at the time of the first trimester. And it’s best that you avoid doing anything that might jeopardize the protective environment your baby is growing in during that phase.
Instead of Dyeing All Hair, Do Parts of Hair
Think of this as an alternative hair treatment. It includes streaking, frosting, and highlights. You can choose any one instead of going all-out and coloring everything. It’s better to be cautious now, isn’t it?
Highlights, streaking, and frosting are gentler, safer hair treatment methods. So you’re minimizing the exposure to harsh chemicals by keeping the hair dye formula away from your scalp and skin.
Go for a Safer Hair Color
Yes, I understand that permanent hair dyes produce the best, most gorgeous-looking, and longer-lasting results. However, they’re not your only option. During pregnancy, you can go for safer hair treatments by selecting ammonia-free, bleach-free, and semi-permanent formulas.
The thing about semi-permanent hair colors is that they minimize your exposure to harmful toxins and chemicals. Although they don’t last very long! But at least you can breathe a sigh of relief in knowing that your unborn child is well protected.
Then there are other safer alternatives like henna and natural vegetable hair dyes.
Hair Dye Ingredients to Avoid During Pregnancy
Certain ingredients in hair coloring products are just not pregnancy-safe. So at the time of choosing the best safe hair dye for pregnancy, make sure the following ingredients are not a part of the formulation.
Ammonia
It’s the first unsafe ingredient that comes to mind when talking about hair dyes. Lucky for you, many brands now offer ammonia-free formulas that you can safely use during pregnancy.
Although scientists are yet to conclude if ammonia gets absorbed into the bloodstream, crosses the placenta, and then enters the tiny little body of your developing baby. Even so, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Parabens
Be it in hair dyes, body washes, or other skin and beauty care products, parabens are not safe during pregnancy. What the preservative does is halt the growth of bacteria and fungus. That may be a good part. But, unfortunately, the bad part is that it has the ability to penetrate your skin and disrupt the workings of your endocrine system.
Peroxide
This is another harmful ingredient commonly found in hair dyes. It can damage your hair’s natural structure by making it brittle and more susceptible to external battering. So your hair is more likely to lose all the natural appeal.
PPD
The full form of PPD is para-phenylenediamine. Hair colors in dark shades are often equipped with this particular ingredient. What it is is a commonly used wood preservative. And studies linking PPD to cancer are not so hard to find.
Resorcinol
If there’s any chemical in hair dyes repeatedly associated with health problems, it’s resorcinol. One of the many health conditions here includes cancer. Resorcinol is added to permanent hair dye formulations for longer-lasting results.
The Safest Way to Use Hair Dyes During Pregnancy
Just follow the instructions below and you’ll be taking all the necessary steps to keep side effects at bay.
1. Test the Hair Dye First
I’m sure you know all about patch testing. When you do a patch test, you’re checking to see if the hair dye causes any adverse effects. So here’s how to do that…
Dab a tiny amount of hair dye on a cotton swab.
Then rub this on the inner part of your elbow. Let it dry for a few minutes.
Does your skin feel irritated or show any signs of negative effects like swelling or redness? If yes, you know you shouldn’t be using it.
2. Go Through the Label and Instructions Thoroughly
There’s no sense in ignoring the instructions provided by the brand. If you wish to prevent any sort of complications, then read the label as well as the application instructions.
3. Leave the Dye on for the Specified Amount of Time
This means there’s no need for you to unnecessarily extend the stay of your hair dye. More often than not, the manufacturer mentions how many minutes or hours to leave the hair color on for. So follow those instructions and then rinse your hair accordingly.
4. Color Your Hair in a Well-Ventilated Room
Make sure there’s enough ventilation in the room. But why is that? It’s because dyes have dangerous chemicals you shouldn’t be breathing into your system. Whether or not you’re pregnant! So air circulation, at such times, is a must.
5. Wear Gloves for Application
Obviously, put on gloves. Along the same lines, keep the formulation from coming in contact with your eyes and skin as much as possible.
6. Don’t Choose Single-Process Hair Dyes
By single-process, I mean complete color changes and even root touch-ups. If there is a safe alternative where the dye doesn’t have to touch your scalp, like in the case of highlights or streaks, then you should opt for that.
7. You can use Natural Hair Colors too
There are coffee and tea for example. These natural hair colors give you the perfect dark shade. Even beet juice, as a matter of fact, is useful when it comes to creating a reddish hue.
Natural Ways to Dye Hair Safely During Pregnancy
For a Dark Shade
First and foremost, there’s henna. The colors henna produces are the different shades between brown and red. So if you want a black or very dark hair color, then you can use indigo after henna. Indigo comes from the Indigo plant, which is a darker shade of blue dye commonly used for textiles and hair colors.
Another very effective natural hair color is black walnut hull powder. This you can steep in hot water for producing the same effects as a dark-colored hair dye. Naturally, more powder implies a darker hue.
Then there’s coffee and tea. You can rinse your hair using strong black coffee or tea for darkening your medium-colored hair.
For a Light Shade
To give your beautiful hair a lighter-colored transformation, lemon juice works the best. You can either pour lemon juice over your hair or spray it.
The second-best option is a combination of rhubarb root, calendula, and chamomile tea rinse. This gives you honey tones with darker blonde hair color.
For a Reddish Hue
Once again, henna works flawlessly when it comes to producing a rich, deep auburn shade on a darker palette of hair. This means if you’re blonde, then the color might be too red.
Tomato juice is also a very effective hair dye. Leave it on for around half an hour for favorable results. Then there are calendula and hibiscus flowers mixed in tea. These also do a swell of a job in adding red tones. And lastly, beetroot powder or beets create a more reddish-purple color.
For Grays and Roots
What is the natural way to get rid of grays or do root touch-ups? You can buy natural hair dyes for covering the gray areas since they don’t cause any hair damage. Plus, these hair color formulas are pregnancy-friendly too.
But if you don’t want to use any sort of hair dyes, then how about incorporating a dry shampoo specifically created for dark hair? This kind of shampoo camouflages light roots. You can even do a calendula or chamomile rinse daily for lightening your dark roots.
Final Words
Pregnancy feels like an experience that simply doesn’t belong to your body. It seems very strange to have to go through so many changes while your baby is developing. Weight gain, increase or decrease in appetite, swollen ankles, exhaustion, etc. The list goes on and on, right?
You obviously don’t have much control over the physical aspects of these inevitable changes. However, you can control your hair color. A change in the way your hair looks is like pampering yourself during those 9 harrowing months of pregnancy.
But then the big question is, what is the safest hair dye to use during pregnancy? Since the popular mainstream ones are packed with chemicals you don’t want to expose your unborn child to. In that case, leave all such worries behind when using any one out of the 10 natural hair dyes I’ve reviewed in this post. Each one of them is safe to use at the time of pregnancy.
Just make sure that the hair coloring formula you pick is free of ammonia, parabens, peroxide, PPD, and resorcinol. Because the goal is to prevent the onset of any adverse or negative effects both on you and your baby.
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