Four thousand years ago, people typically used henna to dye their hair. With the advent of modern chemistry, people have mostly switched from henna and other natural hair dyes and have begun using chemical hair dyes.
As anyone who has had experience with traditional chemical hair dyes can attest to, the dyes can be somewhat dangerous. Even for people who are not allergic to hair dyes will probably experience a small amount of tingling on the skin as the hair dye creates a small allergic reaction. People with sensitive skin have had even more unpleasant reactions to chemical dyes – a few unfortunate souls have even found themselves in the emergency room after a particularly bad allergic reaction.
Of course the risks of allergic reaction increase in times when the body is under systemic stress, such as during pregnancy or long-term illness. Because of these side effects, people are once again exploring natural ideas on ways to dye their hair. Not surprisingly, henna hair dye is one of the top areas people are looking at.
Henna hair dye is typically tinted red. However, by using combinations of other natural dyes, henna dye can be created in a variety of colors. For example, black henna hair dye is created by mixing henna with indigo – the same dye used to dye blue jeans. The combination creates a great dye for creating luscious black hair.
Another benefit of henna hair dyes is that it does not damage hair like the harsh chemical dyes do, but instead coats and conditions the hair, leaving behind silky hair that lasts all month long.
The one other aspect of henna hair dye is that it does not actually change the underlying the hair color, but instead it just coats the hair with the new dye color. This means the hair color will be temporary, and will wash out after about a month. It also means it is probably no a good dye to use for extreme dye jobs such as doing ombre hair color.
