Dying hair with aplastic anemia

[KristinR]

Does anyone still dye their hair? Or is it a forbidden thing. I'm naturally brunette but dyed my hair platinum blonde a few months before being diagnosed. I'm getting married on August 22nd and I want presentable hair, but obviously don't want to do anything to lower my counts. Should I touch up my roots, go back to my natural color? I know there are worries of hair dyes containing benzene. So I'm at a loss as to what to do. Help! If it weren't for my wedding, I would not care what my hair looked like!

[Neil Cuadra]

Kristin,

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding!

There's a very good summary of health concerns related to hair dye by the American Cancer Society.

As you'll read, some studies found a small connection between hair dye and blood diseases, but other studies did not. If there's a risk, the risk factors include:

• Hair dyes manufactured before 1980, which used more dangerous chemicals.
• Permanent or semi-permanent dyes, as opposed to the safer temporary dyes.
• Prolonged exposure, such as what a hairdresser experiences.
• Darker colored dyes.

There's no proof and very little chance that your hair dye affected your health in any way. If you want your hair to be a certain shade in August, but also want to be cautious, you can wait until the time approaches and use a temporary dye.

This is more of an issue for people interested in long-term use of hair dye, such as women who'd hate to let their hair turn grey but are also worried about prolonged exposure to chemicals. Some people decide that managing their hair color is very important to them, especially since there's no conclusive studies showing that it will compromise their health. Others wouldn't feel comfortable with even the small risk, so they decide not to dye their hair. I wouldn't criticize either group for making an informed choice.

We can't avoid every possible risk while living a normal life, so they key is to be aware of the tiny risks here and there and make our own decisions about which are worth it. If we avoided every possible risk then we'd never play sports, travel, take care of a sick friend, eat out, or do so many other things we do.

[KristinR]

My circumstances are kind of unique. I was a hair dresser, and have bleached and dyed my hair every color under the sun. My doctors have run all sorts of tests and the reason for my aplastic anemia still seems to be a mystery. Their only lead is the fact that I had a lot of exposure to hair dyes and all sorts of chemicals. That's the reason I don't know what to do. That's why I wondered if other ladies were having the same challenge or what their doctor was telling them.

[curlygirl]

I don't know the answer for Aplastic Anemia but a girlfriend of mine needed a kidney transplant for a degenerative kidney disease about a decade ago when she was in her 20s, and at the time her nephrologist told her not to die her hair with hair die while her kidneys were failing and after the transplant while she was on cyclosporine because dying your hair is hard on the kidneys. Apparently the chemicals in the die are passed through the kidneys on your way to excreting them out of your body. They did give her permission to die her hair with Henna products because they coat the hair but don't harm the kidneys (so they said, I am not an expert, you may want to consult someone on henna products.) So she went red.

[Marlene]

Most with Aplastic Anemia never know what caused the disease. We are exposed to so many toxins over a life time and the damage doesn't show up for years. Many toxins accumulate in our body over the years.

If you could find more natural products, that may be the way to go. We have gone organic and the least toxic route for all our personal care products. Just don't want to add to the burden placed on the body to detoxify things that don't belong in it.

[TamiMarie]

Originally Posted by KristinR

My circumstances are kind of unique. I was a hair dresser, and have bleached and dyed my hair every color under the sun. My doctors have run all sorts of tests and the reason for my aplastic anemia still seems to be a mystery. Their only lead is the fact that I had a lot of exposure to hair dyes and all sorts of chemicals. That's the reason I don't know what to do. That's why I wondered if other ladies were having the same challenge or what their doctor was telling them.

Hi Kristin!
I am a hairstylist/salon owner with AA...
Im very interested in what color line you were using if there are any of the same ingredients in the lines.
Im looking into hiring an attorney to start a class action suit. If you are able to answer some questions, to get this started, it would really be greatly appreciated, as well as possibly beneficial to you.

Tami Marie Fleming
Salon 29:11
949.606.22705