Hair Color

Is at-home hair coloring as good as professional hair color?

Hundreds of articles abound about how to color your hair at home, but we found the most credible information in Paula Begoun's book "Don't Go Shopping for Hair-Care Products Without Me." Begoun evaluates hair-color products by doing a comprehensive study of their ingredients and the way they work. She does not rate specific hair-color products, however. We found recommendations for hair color products in beauty magazines such as Allure, Shape and Redbook where editors say they test hundreds of beauty products for their annual beauty awards. We cross-referenced those more anecdotal recommendations with user reviews. MakeupAlley.com is a particularly good site for hair-color reviews, and users are detailed in describing ease of use, odor and ultimately, how happy they are with the results.

Hair stylists will tell you, no doubt, that you will get better looking hair-color if you have the job done by a professional. And while this may be true in some cases, plenty of people have success doing it at home, especially if you're looking for subtle all-over color rather than a drastic change or complex highlights. What's more, Paula Begoun says that women who color their own hair have the same rate of satisfaction as those who have it done by a professional. While consumers may question the quality of drugstore hair colors, Begoun explains that at-home hair colorants are "superbly" formulated. In fact, she says that "the way hair dyes function and the ingredients that create these products do not differ between inexpensive products and those found in salon products." The only difference in getting your hair colored in a salon and doing it yourself at home is the level of expertise of the colorist. At-home hair coloring, therefore, is a perfectly acceptable and an affordable alternative for those who simply want to cover gray hair or slightly lighten or darken their natural hair color.

Perhaps the most difficult part of coloring your hair is choosing the actual color you want. While beauty magazines offer a myriad of "rules" to follow concerning skin tone and natural hair color, experts agree that the safest bet when coloring your own hair is to never go more than two shades lighter or darker than your current hair color. If you are looking for anything more dramatic, you should consult a professional. The second rule to follow is to match your current hair color to the chart on the side of the box. This is a better indicator of the color you will get than the model on the front of the box.

Experts say that you should also consider going to a salon for hair coloring if you want to dye your hair red. Professionals insist that red hair color is the hardest one to get right, even for those with naturally red hair. Those with severely damaged hair should also seek the help of a professional in order to avoid too much further damage.

Hair color comes in a multitude of shades and strengths, both of which are described in entirely different ways at the salon than they are at the drugstore. For the purposes of this report, we chose to focus on at-home colorants, which come in three strength levels: semi-permanent (level one), demi-permanent (level two) and permanent (level three).

What's most confusing about drugstore hair colors is that companies do not label their products in a consistent manner. Semi- and demi-permanent products, for example, are often labeled as "non-permanent." But Paula Begoun says that this is not accurate. The label is especially misleading with demi-permanent colors. Begoun explains that although demi-permanent hair-color products state that they will last through at least 24 shampooings, "these are not wash-out dyes; the color stays in the hair shaft permanently, period." Begoun points out that it takes most women about six weeks to shampoo their hair 24 times -- the same amount of time it takes for new hair growth to appear. Semi-permanent hair colors, on the other hand, gradually wash out over the course of six to 12 shampoos.

For years there has been speculation among consumers and health groups that consistent use of hair color can result in an increased risk of certain types of cancer. According to Paula Begoun, this is a real concern but exhaustive research by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Cancer Institute and the National Institutes of Health has yielded no conclusive answers. Begoun explains that the research has been both confusing and conflicting. She says, "In essence...; there is no definitive proof one way or the other." The FDA recommends that consumers weigh the risk for themselves.

According to a short article in Consumer Reports, "Hair-color products can contain lead, a probable carcinogen and developmental toxin, or p-phenylenediamine, which can cause skin reactions and swollen eyelids." For these reasons, if you decide to color your hair, you should skip the patch test recommended in the instructions.

What about natural hair color?

While so-called "natural" hair dyes abound, Paula Begoun points out that even these contain some degree of potentially hazardous chemicals. commercial products that are completely chemical-free, she says, are not very effective. Henna, for example, is a natural hair color that is incredibly drying to the hair shaft, according to Begoun. And editors at the Green Guide insist that henna will only "tint your hair, not truly color it." Editors at Which? magazine point out that natural hair-color products use less chemicals than most drugstore hair colors, but the Green Guide editors are quick to point out that any change to natural hair color causes hair damage. Editors suggest using the gentlest formula that will yield your desired color and using it as infrequently as possible.

Herbatint (*Est. $10) and Naturtint (*Est. $12.50) are two permanent hair colors that use a smaller amount of hair dye chemicals in conjunction with natural ingredients. Both performed well in comparison tests at Which? magazine, and both have fairly decent ratings at MakeupAlley.com (though each gets only a handful of reviews). Semi-permanent colors are also safer than permanent dyes, according to the Green Guide, and have "less structural impact on your hair."