Tip of the Week

Color Me Softly

If you tune into "The Today Show" while eating breakfast, you probably heard about the recent European study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology which found that among lymphoma patients, those who had used hair dyes were 1.19 times more likely to get lymphoma than those who never used it. Those who began coloring their hair before 1980 were 1.37 times more likely to get lymphoma.

These are not large increases in risk, according to many epidemiologists, who note that smoking makes people 10-60 times more likely to get lung cancer. As Dr. Silvia de Sanjose, a senior researcher on the European study, told The New York Times, "If the data is correct ... people should be happy and comforted that the observed effect is minor." Yes, maybe, but as authors of an analysis of 79 hair dye studies concluded just last year, the possible link between lymphoma and hair dyes merits further investigation, especially among hair stylists, who have more intense and frequent exposure to hair dye than consumers.

Risk research for the most part yields less than certain results, and this may be a particular problem with personal care products, as most contain ingredients that have never been assessed for safety by either the Cosmetic Industry Review panel (an industry body) or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is charged with regulating cosmetic ingredients. This regulatory shortcoming is the result of loopholes in federal law that allow the cosmetics industry to put chemicals into personal care products without requiring testing.

In the face of uncertainty and a regulatory system that favors the company over the customer, The Green Guide encourages consumers to take matters into their own hands. First, we advise consumers to read labels and choose hair care products that are free of known hazardous chemicals. The following four top our list of chemicals (or groups of chemicals) to avoid: phthalates, parabens, coal tar and sodium lauryl sulfates.

Second, we encourage customers to talk with their hair stylist about what's in the products they use. John Masters of John Masters Organics, in New York City, no longer uses coal tars in his hair dyes for his and his clients' safety and has created an entire line of hair care products with none of the top four problem chemicals.

Two years ago, the EU banned hundreds of carcinogens and reproductive toxins from all personal-care products on the European market. While the U.S. has banned only 9, a number of U.S. companies have pledged to create hair-care and other personal care products that are free of problem ingredients. Many of their improved products are on the market today. For some product suggestions and where to buy them, click here.

© The Green Guide, 2008

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