To Color or Not to Color…
I’m now choosing NOT to color my hair… not anymore. For the past year or so, I’ve begun cleaning out every possible source of toxin in my world, in order to create an ideal body and environment for getting pregnant. I switched to all organic bedding. I threw out chemical-laden cosmetics and body care products. I bought the best-rated water purifier I could afford. I eat an extremely healthy organic, all vegan, high raw diet. I even had my amalgam fillings removed! The last thing was coming face-to-face with the most challenging change yet — don’t laugh, but it was my hair color!
Until now, neither the world nor I had known my true color since I was, seriously, eleven years old. I was a blonde for so long that it had been inseparable with my self-identity. But no more. That’s right, I’ve gone all natural in the hair department. Not only are the harsh chemicals for color-treating hair potential toxins for pregnant and nursing mothers, but — more significantly — those same chemicals do so much damage to hair that you must use even MORE chemicals (polymers, basically) to make color-treated hair soft and silky. There’s more truth to the Barbie metaphor than people realize… I literally had blonde, plastic hair!
So as a big part of my going green, I went brown! Haha! When I decided to go natural, one of the defining moments for me came after spending a lot of time on Kris Carr’s forum, MyCrazySexyLife. It absolutely broke my heart to see so many young women with health challenges. It was at that point I realized a clean diet is not enough. All stressors have a cumulative effect on the immune system; I want to do as much as I can to reduce that accumulation. A little here, a little there — it all adds up, and then leaps into the stratosphere when you make a dramatic change like going vegan or stopping the monthly chemical bath required to change hair color.
I realize that reducing total environmental toxicity (internal and external) can never guarantee I won’t get cancer, but I can’t help but feel that it helps — it’s a numbers game, after all. I know there are toxins out there that I cannot really control (most notably, air pollution — not just from cars, but outgassing from toxic chemicals in carpet, paint, adhesives, and other construction materials that are all around us). So to combat all these things I can’t control, I’ve gone total mad-dog against all the things I CAN control. I’m eating an ultra-healthy diet, getting lots of exercise, making sure I rest and have good quality sleep, and using the healthiest hair and beauty products. It might not be an issue you hear about very often right now, but I expect we’ll all be hearing about it more as time goes by and data come in about the additive effects of toxins on the body.
I am avoiding as many synthetic chemicals as possible, not only because it’s bad for my health, but also because they are bad for the environment. Many people forget that the environment suffers, not only when coloring products wash down the drain and into our water supply, but also from the impact of all the other products needed to maintain the colored hair so it doesn’t look processed (shampoos, conditioners, hair balm, gel, etc). All of these have a detrimental environmental impact. So, for me, coloring my hair was more than just a little procedure every few weeks. I can no longer rationalize what I was doing using that logic.
The fact that some hair treatment processes don’t touch my scalp doesn’t let me off the hook either… it still damages the shaft of my hair. Bleach-damaged hair is so porous that it requires a chemical soup of products to make it appear healthy. My hair feels so amazing now. Gone now are the days of seeing so many frizzed-out rogue hairs flying around my face. No more breakage! No more brittle ends snapping off (hair isn’t supposed to do that)! My hair is now fuller, beautifully soft and shiny and healthy — my husband calls it “luxurious.” It now feels right, both literally and figuratively.
What’s funny (and was unexpected) is that, since going back to my true brunette self, I feel more natural overall than I have in 20 years. My overall attitude and aura are noticeably different. I now walk by a mirror and I feel beautiful. It’s still quite new to me even though I’ve been working on this transition for over a year. And, even though it’s not my ideal length, I’m proud of it and I know it’ll get there eventually.
I should mention that I DO believe there is a natural, sustainable way to color your hair, and that is with henna, which is generally used for coloring hair darker brown, black, or red. I’ve not experimented with it yet because I’m happy with my natural color. But, as I age, when I start getting a lot of grays, I might give henna a try. We’re also starting to see specialized hair salons cropping up that offer organic and less toxic alternatives to traditional treatments. It would be great if these innovative green businesses really caught on, so look in your area and consider giving one of them a try.
So how about all of you out there? If you color your hair, or have ever considered doing so, did toxicity play any role in your thinking? Please share your story!
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