Coloring Your Hair

Hair coloring is no longer limited to these 4 main hair colors: black, brown, blonde, and red. These colors replicated in hair dyes can be mixed with each other to achieve various tones to create different shades, tones and appearances.

Gray or white hair lacks color pigment. Older individuals or for those whose hair turns gray prematurely may also choose to color their hair to hide the gray.

Coloring hair is very popular these days. You can see people of all age groups experimenting with different hair colors. People are trying out all kinds of hair colors to make a fashion statement. Many are experimenting with reds, greens, blue, purples, and additional hair coloring ideas.

Hair coloring has been in use since ancient times. Ancient Greeks and Romans colored and lightened their hair; the process was symbolic of honor, courage and status level. in ancient times, the ancients used harsh soaps to lighten or color their hair. Nowadays, hair coloring is  popular throughout the world. According to some reports around 75% of women in the United States color their hair.

There are many products for coloring hair available in the market. There are permanent as well as temporary colors as well as bleaching agents.

Permanent hair coloring products contain an oxidizing agent and an alkalizing ingredient. These chemicals raise the cuticle of the hair fiber so the color can penetrate the hair fiber. Chemicals also facilitate the formation of tints within the hair fiber and bring about the lightening action of peroxide. A patch test should be conducted before using any coloring agent to determine if the would-be user is allergic to the color or not. If a person is found to be  allergic to the chemicals used in coloring hair, the use of the product should be stopped immediately.

In the case of temporary colors, the the pigment molecules are large so they do not penetrate the cuticle layer. Normally temporary colors are used to add bright and neon colors to the hair. Temporary hair colorants do not penetrate the hair shaft itself. Instead, these dyes are adsorbed in the hair follicle. Temporary hair coloring products come in various forms such as shampoos and gels. These dyes provide only a coating action that can be removed by shampooing.

Lastly, some people lighten their hair, which is also known as bleaching or decoloring. This process involves the diffusion of the natural color pigment or artificial color from the hair.

The use of color or other chemical processes can cause damage to hair such as breakage of hair strands, hair loss, and dry scalp. It is always best to visit an expert to for coloring hair to avoid any kind of hair damage.