Can You Bleach Your Hair While Pregnant? Is It Safe [AU] 2023?

First-trimester hair care doesn’t need to be complicated. In fact, your hair may never have felt so thick and lustrous as it does during pregnancy! But can you bleach your hair while pregnant? It is a great question. Our advice? Don’t do it. In this article, we’ll be sharing the science behind exactly why we’ve made that recommendation. 

The great news? We’ll explain why your hair can be so glossy during pregnancy and why, when your little bundle of joy has arrived, you needn’t be alarmed if you experience some temporary hair loss. We’ll talk you through how to restore your hair to its former glory in the postpartum phase and share a safer alternative to hair bleach that will leave your hair feeling and looking great.

Risks Of Bleaching Hair While Pregnant

So let’s get straight to it. Is hair bleaching safe for pregnant people? Since approximately 67% of women in a study continued using semi-permanent hair dyes despite a high incidence of allergic reactions, the cosmetic importance of this trend remains high.^[1]

Well, we know that while hair dyes contain potentially highly toxic chemicals, they are generally not considered^[2] carcinogenic or cancer-causing. And the effects of hair dye on neonatal development remain unclear.^[3]

May Increase Pregnancy Complications

Taking a look at a recent 2015 meta-analysis,^[4] we can see that hairdressers working in a salon wearing gloves had a significantly elevated risk of pregnancy complications, including fetal and embryonic loss and low birth weight. However, the authors cautioned in asserting a direct link between the occupation and the observed pregnancy outcomes. 

In addition, in the first study of its kind, maternal occupational exposure to hair dye was found to be significantly associated^[5] with stillbirths. The study also looked at fetal and maternal exposure to other chemical substances harming reproductive outcomes (gasoline, insecticides, and herbicides) but found none of these other chemical exposure types to affect these outcomes as much as hair dye did.

Linked To Leukemia Risk In Young Children

A multi-center hospital-based study conducted in Brazil offers further clarity, reporting a statistically significant link between maternal exposure to hair dyes and straightening products while pregnant —— and the incidence of leukemia^[6] in children under two years of age. This link was most common when using these products in the first trimester.

Interestingly, some substances in hair dye have been observed in animal studies to pass into the blood circulation and exhibit potentially carcinogenic effects.^[7] It is not clear if these effects may also occur in humans, but it raises a question about the safety of these chemicals, especially during pregnancy.  

May Increase Risk Of Abnormal Infant Birth Weight

Even using hair dye while trying to conceive or TTC appears to increase the risk of abnormal infantile birth weight, as reported in this study^[8] of 6,203 pregnant women.

May Increase Anxiety In The Mother

Generally, prenatal anxiety disorders are considered common and emerging^[9] in studies as potential causes of preterm birth and low birth weight. 

Engaging in non-essential practices — such as hair bleaching — that might be damaging to a fetus can seriously increase maternal anxiety, and for a good reason. A 2021 Japanese large-scale study^[5] of fifteen regional health centers, for example, recently reported that hairdressers or individuals exposed to hair dyes more than weekly, across trimesters, was significantly associated with stillbirth. 

Can You Bleach Your Hair While Breastfeeding?

We’ve covered some of the potential risks of hair bleaching while pregnant, but what about during the breastfeeding phase?

While all women react differently, we would also advise against it, and here’s why. A possible association has been found between maternal hair dye use and the development of leukemia^[6] in children under the age of two years. The study’s authors subsequently cited the need for pregnant and breastfeeding women to avoid^[6] hair dyes. 

Safety Precautions

For professional hair colorists who are exposed to a high concentration of bleaching and dying chemicals, it is recommended^[10] that they always wear gloves, work in a well-ventilated area, and limit their engagement with hair dye chemicals as much as they can. Also, before coloring, always apply a patch test to check for an allergic reaction. 

For expectant and breastfeeding mothers, it appears the safest option for hair dyeing is to wait until breastfeeding has ended before being exposed to any hair-bleaching agents. That’s because scientific knowledge relating to the safety of using hair dyes during pregnancy remains relatively scarce^[5] and often inconsistent. Our take is that until its safety can be assured, it is better to sidestep it altogether.

When Is The Safest Time To Bleach Your Hair? 

In our opinion, the safest time to bleach your hair is subsequently after the pregnancy and breastfeeding phases have ended! Based on several research studies, in our view, it just isn’t worth the risk.

Maintaining Beautiful Hair Without Bleaching

The story is not all negative, however! There are many other indulgent hair treatments that you can engage in while pregnant, such as coconut oil or argan oil hair masks and other deep conditioning treatments. 

Furthermore, during pregnancy, many women experience wonderfully thick hair,^[11] principally because hair follicles generally remain in the anagen (growth) phase in pregnancy for longer than usual.

Following birth, however, hair follicles enter the telogen (shedding) phase once again, during which many women experience accelerated hair loss. This is known as postpartum telogen effluvium.^[12] 

As bleaching can be harsh on hair,^[13] causing it to become brittle or break, it might make postpartum telogen-related hair loss appear even more extreme. Therefore, it may be sensible to wait until your hair has re-entered the anagen phase to top up those highlights. 

And don’t worry- postpartum hair loss doesn’t last long! In the meantime, supplements can help you feel great and give you a boost, and may even improve the quality of your hair.

The Bottom Line

Pregnancy is a time of great joy, anticipation, and change, but it can cause us some anxiety. We want to know what is safe for our baby, yet conflicting advice can confuse us along the way!

That’s why we’ve clarified some conflicting hair care advice in this article.  So, if you’ve clicked on this article thinking, ‘Can I bleach my hair while pregnant?’ or ‘Can I bleach my hair during the first trimester of my pregnancy?’, our answer is we think it is better to wait until the postpartum post-breastfeeding stage. In the meantime, invest in some indulgent hair masks, relax, and enjoy the impending arrival of your little bundle of joy!

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