PPD (paraphenylenediamine or pphentlenediamine) is an ingredient used in Permanent / Oxidative Hair colorants.
PPD is allowed for use in hair colorants across 27 EU member states and the USA.
Is PPD banned anywhere?
NO. Contrary to media reports claiming that PPD is banned in several European countries and the USA, this is not the case. The manufacture and supply of cosmetic products, including hair colorants, is covered by stringent safety laws - the EU Cosmetics Directive. PPD is not banned in any European country nor is it banned in the USA.
What does PPD do?
PPD is typically used in Permanent colorants and is needed for almost all shades, but definitely for the darker shades. Almost all oxidative hair colorants contain a PPD type of hair dye because they are the best way to achieve permanent hair color and are the only way of successfully coloring gray hair.
Is PPD present in all hair colorants?
PPD is widely used in permanent hair colorants and is needed for most shades, but is not present in all hair coloring products. However it is a related ingredient, will be present in the darker shades
As well as having to be listed in the ingredient list on the box, when a hair colorant contains PPD or a related hair dye, the product also has to be labeled with "Contains phenylenediamines" or "Contains phenylenediamines". PPD will be labelled in the ingredient list as Paraphenylenediamine (toluenediamines)". PPD will be labelled in the ingredient list as paraphenylenediamine.
Is PPD dangerous?
NO. PPD is safe to use in hair colorants as directed the product instructions. There is a legal requirement for cosmetic products, and there ingredients to be strictly assessed for safety by duly qualified, professional assessor before they can be sold.
The use of PPD is strictly regulated in the cosmetic safety legislation.
PPD may only be used in hair colorants and only up to a certain level (up to a maximum of 2% when applied to the hair). Products have to carry specific label warnings and clear usage instructions, which must be followed.
Does PPD accumulate in the body?
NO. Hair colorants are formulated to work specifically on the hair. Although they do come into contact with the scalp during application, a negligible amount of the product is likely to be absorbed, and that will be eliminated from the body within 24 hours.This is acknowledged by the European Commission's expert panel (the Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety, CCS).
The development of an allergy and related hair dyes, overtime is an immune response to repeated, separate exposures to PPD. Exposure could be via a number of contact points including printed inks or "black henna" tattoos. It is not because of PPD accumulates ( builds up) in the body.
Is PPD used in any other cosmetic product?
NO. The trick European cosmetic legislation that covers the manufacture of cosmetics product only allows the use of PPD in hair colorants. However, PPD is sometimes used illegally in so-called "black henna" temporary tattoos - the sort that you might be offered on at fairs or on beach holidays. You should always avoid these tattoos because PPD can cause nasty reactions id applied directly to the skin in such high concentrations.
It can leave you with swollen, sore, red, "burn" and can sensitize you to PPD. This means you could also react to otherwise safe products such as hair colorants which also contain PPD.
The is no such thing as 'black henna', henna extract is orange-red in color.
Hair colorants themselves are regulated under the strict EU and USA cosmetic safety regulations and are safe to use when the instructions are carefully followed.
Should allergy tests always be performed before hair colorants are applied?
If a hair colorant is labeled with directions to carry out an allergy alert test, then yes, do it.
Why do people react to PPD?
The vast majority of people in Europe and the USA (over 98%) do not have the potential to react to the substance PPD. Of those individuals who have the potential to react to PPD ( under 1.5%) only a small number will develop an allergy after hair colorant use (around 0.1% of the population).
If someone's the potential to react to PPD, they will not react the first time they encounter PPD but those early exposures prime their immune system which may over-react when they meet PPD again. Their immune system essentially mistakes PPD for an invader and retains a memory of it. When that substance is met again, it is the over-reaction rather than the ingredient itself that causes the damage.
Not everyone has the potential to develop an allergy. Those who have the potential will, sooner or later, produce an allergic reaction if they continue to be exposed to PPD.
The best advise is to always preform an allergy test 48 hours before coloring the hair, exactly directed on the box and in the instruction leaflet.
Are allergic reactions to hair colorants common?
NO, they are rare. Millions of people all over the world use hair colorants without experiencing any unwanted effects. In the UK 100 million hair colorant applications are carried out every year. Hear colorants are one of the most studied consumer products on the market and their safety is supported by a wealth of scientific research.
Reactions to hair colorants can occur for a very small number of people, in the same way that some individuals can react to a variety of foods and natural substances. Color allergies are far less common than food allergies.
Food allergies affect 1-55 of the general population
Allergic reactions to hair colorants including serious reactions is between 0.3 and 4.3% in every million products sold.
What safety assessments do hair colorants have to undergo?
Before any cosmetic product can be placed on the market in the Europe or the uSA it must undergo a very strict safety assessment by a qualified safety assessor. The assessment covers the safety of the finished product as well as each of the individual ingredients, taking into account how often and where the product is to be used and by whom ( home user, salon client, and hair salon professional).
The safety assessment is a legal requirement that must be kept by the manufacture and is open for inspection by law enforcers.
What are the different types of hair colorants?
The are three basic categories of hair colorants, depending on the color effect produced and how long the color lasts:
Temporary (SEMI)
Demi- Permanent
Oxidative / Permanent
Temporary hair colorants modify the color of the hair temporarily and are readily removed by washing. These products tend to be ready-to-use (no pre-mixing) and the color settles on the hair surface.
Semi-permanent hair colorants last longer than temporary hair colorants because they settle with in the natural scales of the hair cuticle. The color gradually fades with washing. The colorant does not lighten the natural hair color.
Oxidative / Permanent hair colorants consist of two groups Both must be mixed with an oxidative liquid to create permanent effects. Oxidative hair colorants give the hair either "tone-on-tone color, referred to as Demi Permanent color or Permanent colorants that are resistant to washing and provide excellent gray hair coverage.
How do permanent oxidative colorants work?
The key ingredients are the oxidative precursors (such as PPD and phenylenediamines), the alkalizing agent (typically ammonia), the oxidative couplers and the oxidant (Hydrogen peroxide). The alkalizing agent to open the outer layer of the hair so the Oxidative precursors ( like PPD) can then enter the hair fiber itself and react with the oxidize couplers in the presence of the oxidant. This all takes place inside the hair fiber to form colored pigments which are too big to move out of the hair shaft so they remain in the hair providing the permanent color.
Are natural hair colorants safer?
NO. All cosmetic products must be safe and are subject to the same cosmetics legislation, including the safety assessment, irrespective of where the ingredients are sourced.
The body cannot differentiate between a natural or man-made substance.
If an ingredient is safe to use, it does not matter where it comes from. If an ingredient is not safe to use in cosmetics products it will be banned, whether it is natural or man-made.
Formulated to work where needed.
In order to get good mixing of the hair coloring mixture with developer, the developer and color need to be quite thin. However, thin products would run off the hair. To overcome this, gel networks form within the product on mixing to turn thinner products into thick and easy to apply final forms, that will not drip or run of the hair.
www.ctpa.org.uk.