Pregnancy is a rollercoaster of different emotions. However, some pregnant women desire to maintain their style by undergoing beauty and hair treatments like keratin, which straightens and smoothens the hair and tames frizz. This hair service lasts for months and can save your time and effort from getting ready in the morning.
The emerging trends of the hair industry are growing at a faster rate than the growth of your hair tresses. The different hair treatments include hair smoothening, rebonding, keratin boost, hair perming, hair colouring etc. The general question that comes across many women during their pregnancy is whether it is safe to do hair treatments during pregnancy?
As we all know, pregnancy is the time we have to take utmost care of both ourselves and the one inside the womb. No woman will ever wants to risk her baby’s life or her life when pregnant. Hair treatments include the different processes by which you can get the colour and texture of your hair changed. It contains many chemicals to change your hair’s original texture and colour of your hair. Chemicals are something every woman is advised to stay away from during pregnancy.
This article would like to highlight the different side effects of hair treatments.
What is the risk involved?
The most significant risk with hair treatments is the chemicals present in them. Every chance you may inhale the substances, or it may penetrate your skin. In both cases, the chemicals can reach your bloodstream, and some chemicals can pass through the placenta and reach the fetus. In both the above cases, there are chances for chemicals to harm you as well as your little one.
If you take an example, Keratin treatment, sometimes called a Brazilian blowout or Brazilian keratin treatment, is a chemical procedure usually done in a salon that makes your hair look straighter as long as six months. It adds an intense glossy shine to hair and can reduce frizz. The chemical used for this treatment is a known carcinogen called Formaldehyde and other substances such as ethanediol and glyoxal.
It is also known to irritate the skin, eyes, nose and lungs and cause dizziness. Short-term exposure can cause asthma-like symptoms, while long-term exposure can cause permanent central nervous system damage and ongoing pulmonary problems. As a result, this treatment has been banned in several countries, including Canada and the European Union.
Common side effects of Hair treatments during pregnancy.
- Complications in Pregnancy: Most of the relaxants used in hair treatments contain sodium hydroxide. When mixed with water, this chemical gets hot quickly and can cause burns and allergies. Sodium Hydroxide is also a potent chemical and may cause complications during delivery.
- Nausea and dizziness: During pregnancy, a woman’s body becomes more sensitive than any other time. They become nauseous and start vomiting for specific tastes and smells. The harsh chemicals used during hair treatments can cause severe headaches and even make you nauseous for some pregnant women.
- Damage to Hair and Scalp: Some hair treatments contain ‘lye’ as an ingredient that may cause some damage to the hair or scalp, especially if your scalp is more sensitive due to pregnancy.
- Allergies: Breathing in harmful fumes could develop a rash (contact dermatitis) or have an allergic reaction to the ingredients for those pregnant women who are allergic.
- Irritation in the Respiratory Tract: Some of the chemicals used during hair treatments emit fumes. These fumes can be sensitive for some pregnant women. Fumes can cause severe irritation in the respiratory tract too.
- Early childhood leukaemia: A study published in the journal Chemico-Biological Interactions in 2013 stated a relation between maternal exposure to hair dye and hair straightening cosmetics with early-age leukaemia.
- Neuroblastoma: A study published in 2005 in the journal Cancer Causes Control showed that using hair dyes could give rise to childhood cancer or neuroblastoma. Neuroblastoma is a type of cancer that initiates in the fetal stage and affects the nerve cells. The chance of getting neuroblastoma is higher from temporary hair dyes than permanent hair dyes. The study also showed a moderately increased risk of neuroblastoma with the use of any hair dye in the month before or during pregnancy.
Safe Hair Treatment Options
- Opt for a well ventilated reputed salon and self-check to ensure the tools are sterilized properly and the ingredients do not contain harmful chemicals.
- Opt For ‘No-Lye’ Treatment since it uses calcium hydroxide and guanidine carbonate, which are relatively less harmful than others. Since hair treatments are very time consuming, there are more chances to get backache and body pain during pregnancy, so make sure you take break during the session and make yourself comfortable.
- Opt for natural hair colourings like henna or other safer options such as temporary straightening or ironing your hair to avoid the aftereffects of chemical hair treatments.
There are still more controversies regarding this topic since very few studies have examined the effects of dyes and other hair chemicals on pregnant women. Many doctors have their own differences in opinion; some recommend stopping, while others say that it’s OK to continue. Still, others say that treatments should be avoided in the first trimester, but they’re OK later in pregnancy. To be on the safer side, please do consult your doctor before you plan to do any hair treatments.
