January 2002
Dear Paula,
I read your article today about the lady who is allergic to hair color. I realize that Paula is not a fan of natural products, but to not tell this lady to try some of the natural hair colors on the market is terrible. There are many, including Naturtint and Herbatint for full gray hair coverage. These are great for sensitive people. Please Paula, look into these. To tell this lady to get allergy testing rather than suggest a natural product is almost a crime. Is your goal to help the consumer or the big companies who likely provide kickbacks? If it is the latter then you should change your name from Cosmetics Cop to Big Company Employee. [I don't understand] your continued disregard for natural products and getting help to consumers (which may not always be with a natural product), [and] I am mad.

Vicki, via e-mail

Dear Vicki,
I can't even get most cosmetics companies to return my phone calls much less provide products for reviews, (and money would just be a joke-that's reserved for celebrity endorsers, not critics of the industry). While I understand your concern about my recommendations, please understand that I did not overlook the options you mentioned, nor am I opposed to natural ingredients, as long as they are safe. However, the products you mentioned, Naturtint and Herbatint, are not natural in the least. In fact they are decidedly unnatural, and include as many problematic ingredients as you may find in any other permanent hair-dye product, whether from the drugstore or the salon.

Herbatint is a permanent hair coloring that claims to have "a natural herbal base and no ammonia that gently colors and protects hair structure while giving hair a deep natural gloss and brilliance. It is the only color that has the advantage of coloring without damaging the hair structure." Yet it only takes a quick glance at their ingredient list to notice that this is not gentle or natural and that there are ingredients that can damage hair. Here is the exact ingredient list for their hair-color products, with my bracketed comments about specific ingredient concerns: "Water, Nonoxynol-6, Nonoxynol-4 [these are forms of phenol], Ethanolamine [releases nitrosamines], Propylene Glycol [popularly referred to as anti-freeze], EDTA, Sodium Metabisulfite [a reducing and bleaching agent; it is extremely alkaline and potentially damaging to hair], Walnut Extract, Rhubarb Extract, Cinchona Extract, P-Phenylenediamine [this is the ingredient suspected of being carcinogenic in hair dye products-source: FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition], Resorcinol [a form of phenol, which is derived from petroleum and is irritating to skin; there is serious concern about its use in cosmetics], O-Aminophenol, M-Aminophenol [both are derived from phenol]." Naturtint's ingredients are just as problematic, at least from any natural perspective.

Although those ingredients pose concern, there are no alternatives for permanently dyeing hair (changing hair color or covering any amount of gray for an extended length of time) that do not contain an assortment of problematic ingredients. I wish that wasn't the case, but there is no way around it, except for not dyeing your hair.

Many consumers share your belief in the trustworthiness and reliability of products that call themselves natural. It is a misplaced conviction. I feel strongly that your anger at me is misdirected; your ire should instead be aimed at the companies who are asserting false information that is potentially dangerous to the consumer.