Garnier HerbaShine Color Creme

Negative Reaction

I have light brown/dirty blonde hair naturally, and twice I used the cheap Revlon hair dye (golden blonde) - 4 dollars was a great deal for the results. The latest hair color I purchased was Garnier Nutrisse's Honey Golden Blonde #93. I put it on my very short hair and about 3-5 minutes into the application I felt a burning sensation, so I washed off the dye immediately. Stressed out by the experience, feeling somewhat light headed, I went online and found a few cases who had severe reactions (to the brown dye mostly), but also I discovered a scientific, credible article that talked about self tests that each hair dye package suggests. It turns out that the self test might be quite misleading and will not necessarily display true results. People will often get a negative result to an allergy, but that does not guarantee that the hair dye will not cause an allergic reaction while doing your hair. One woman was taken to a hospital due to burns on her face, neck, and sculp that appeared hours after the application... My guess is the reaction to the dye might have had something to do with ammonia. Nutrisse is not an ammonia free product, whereas Revlon does not contain ammonia. So based on these facts, I would personally recommend the least harsh dye. Ammonia is a no go! In fact perhaps going to Whole Foods and searching for some relatively more natural products would be best. I don't feel as confident to return to chemical colorants after this...

March 20, 2010