Marcy’s Concerned:I’ve been dying my hair at home for years, and have never done an allergy patch test. I’m starting to wonder now if one of these days it’ll catch up to me. Unfortunately, I’m usually pretty impatient with my hair dye and don’t budget in time for a 48-hour-long test before wanting to color my hair. How common are such allergies, anyway?
Also, The instructions say not to cover the test patch on your arm for 48 hours. What if I need to wear a long-sleeved shirt or sweater? Will that alter the allergy test results somehow?
Ok, last question, I promise… I’ve noticed a new warning that those with tattoos may be more suceptible to experiencing an allergy from using hair dye. Is that true for a tattoo anywhere on the body, even though you’re only using the hair dye on your head?
The Left Brain’s Soothing Response:
This is a great question! Allergies to hair dyes are not very common although they do happen. Exact figures are hard to obtain because most times people who have an allergy don’t report it (or don’t even notice). It’s most important to use the patch test the first time you try a hair dye. Otherwise, your scalp could become VERY swollen, sore, and red. However, if you’ve been coloring your hair for years you probably won’t have any problems. And if you do decide to try the patch test, covering with a long sleeve shirt probably won’t affect the results. Just make sure it is loose fitting.
We never seen a case where a tattoo has caused a person to become more sensitive to hair dye. But if it DID happen, it wouldn’t matter where the tattoo is on your body. What happens is that your body becomes sensitized to the dye in the tattoo (if you are allergic). If the hair dye is chemically similar to the tattoo dyes (and usually it’s not) then it could cause some problems. However, if you’ve been coloring for years and you haven’t experienced any problems it’s unlikely that you’ll start now. Hope that helps!
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Liz Says:
I don’t understand how the photo goes along with this.
thebeautybrains Says:
I wondered the same thing. The Right Brain is responsible for picture selection and I for one just don’t understand that half sometimes.
thebeautybrains Says:
The meaning of the picture is really quite obvious:
1) Allergic reactions can cause your skin to swell up.
2) Besides hair dye, latex is a very common cause of skin allergies.
3) The picture is of a man in a swollen latex suit.
Ok, maybe it’s not that obvious but it was weird enough to catch your attention!
keegan Says:
DO THE ALLERGY TEST! i attempted to dye my hair from a box last spring; ive always dyed it blonde, so i decided to go brown. i had never done an allergy test before, so it didn’t even cross my mind. the next day my face was exploded with puffiness! i had to go to the emergency room and take steroids for three days! i learned my lesson
MELISSA Says:
One lesson I learned about the importance of patch tests are hormone changes. In my sixth month of pregnancy my doctor said I could color my roots. I used my same color that I have used for the past five years with my same 30 lift developer and burned my scalp. Apparently my condition made me more sensitive and my son is now two and half months old and the blisters just healed. There really is not a whole lot you can do to heal them faster either as if being pregnant isn’t uncomfortable enough. Hindsight is 20/20 and if I knew then what I know now, I’d have put my vanity in the back seat and dealt with the roots. Even my super oily skin became somewhat dry and I also became sensitive to my regular shampoo and conditioner not to mention I have become very sensitive to fragrance. It really is amazing how much your hormones can influence your agreeability to cosmetic products. So the lesson here is beware the hormones and hair dye!