Entries Tagged as ''

Winter Hair Care Tips

The winter chill and spending a lot of time in artificially heated and dry interiors can wreak havoc with hair. Dry, unmanageable hair, frizz and hair fall are just some of the winter bugbears. Here’s what you can do:

Don’t get stressed about hair fall – Remember the old saw about losing 100 hairs a day? Well that is normal and our hair undergoes growth and rest phases which may cause us to lose even more or at times overestimate the amount of hair we lose.

Hot oil massage – This can feel marvelously soothing and relaxing and is great for the hair as well. The oil coats and conditions the tresses whereas the massaging action stimulates hair follicles to produce even more hair. The added advantage is that the heat can feel great on the scalp in winter.

Use warm not hot water to shampoo hair – It may be tempting to use hot water but resist the temptation because hot water will strip moisture from the hair. Use only warm water for shampooing.

Use home remedies – Egg, yoghurt, mashed bananas can all make excellent natural conditioners so use them rather than chemical based cosmetics.

PPD or p-Phenylendiamine in Hair Color

In recent times there have been reports of severe and in cases even fatal reactions to the use of permanent or semi permanent hair colors because of the ingredient PPD or p-Phenylendiamine that is commonly found to be present in this hair product.

PPD is what fixes the hair color into the hair, preventing it from being washed out; however the reactions to this ingredient can be a matter of grave concern:

  • 29 year old Mariade Kelly ended up in a hospital high dependency unit after reacting to hair dye with blisters, itching and a dangerously accelerated heart beat. Her eyelids were swollen shut and she was terrified.
  • Chloe Robbins is just 14 and she suffered a reaction that had her face swelling up to the extent that her eyes were swollen shut and she herself looked like the elephant man
  • 17 year old Tabatha McCourt suffered a violent fit just 20 minutes after using hair color. She was vomiting and screaming before collapsing and finally dying as a result of her reaction which is being attributed to PPD.

So be careful about using hair color – reactions could also occur after many applications of the hair color quite unexpectedly.