Allergy to PPD?

[Cathie87]

Hi! I have been colouring my hair blond for 20 years using different products and brands available on the market.  I never had any problem until last time.  Around 24 hours later, my eyelids started to get itchy.  In the matter of 20 minutes, they had become very swollen.  The next day when I woke up, they were SO swollen I could not see a thing.  My lips wre also a bit swollen as well as my throat.  I was totally disfigured and stayed this way for 3 days!  HORROR!!... Have I suddenly become allergic to the PPD contained in most colorants?  Has anybody suffered such a reaction?  Do you know any alternatives to color hair safely, at least the time I go back gradually to my natural colour?  I'm stuck and very worried of what would happen if I had another episode... Please, help!

[magdalena500]

Hi this sounds like a slight reaction to ppd i would watch in the future if i was you ,it started 8yrs ago for me with a slight redness to my face and neck but as i have found out to my cost every reaction to it is gets worse because a doctor informed me that your body reacts more strongly everytime,I have been in hospital twice with trying different supposed ppd free products the last time I could not see!... my face was so swollen someone at the hosp thought i had been in a car crash!! so just be very careful in the future I would say.

[betsy218]

I have been dying my hair brown for 25 years just recently I had a systemic
reaction  and am wondering if I reacted to inhaling the ppd.My feet and hands were very itchy and my tongue was swollen.I almost went to the er however I took benadryl and it resloved.. I did not have a skin reaction, which my doc thought was strange..I have also had a recent reaction to novacine and I wonder if there is a relation.Are there any safe products out there?

[hann874]

I had a terrible reaction to Aveda products about a year ago.  Then just a few weeks ago I tried another natural product, Herbatint, and wound up in the emergency room.  PPD reactions can happen any time, even after years of use of the chemical.  It has killed a number of people and needs to be avoided.

[AudreyBee]

Interesting, as it was Goldwell applied at a salon that set off the allergy in Nov. 2011.

[sophhaaa]

i also have an allergy to ppd and i broke out in hives and buring around the neck ears face and eyes , i stayed like this for 2 weeks ! but it eventually goes away i think the trick is to patch test before you dye your hair again and dont patch test it on the inside of the elbow wer it tells you to because it is a very sensitive area :) hope i could be of help

[GEM217]

I had the same experiences as all of you -- dyed my hair for years (blonde), then decided to go brown and that's when it really manifested.  For a few years prior to going brown, I had itching along the hairline by my neck, but the darker color made it go crazy.  I developed weeping scabs, my face was swollen, and the itching, redness and scabs were on my neck and ears as well as my scalp.  I was diagnosed with a PPD allergy.  Not dying my hair and growing out the color (gray and brown) would have been pretty bad, but continuing to color could have been fatal.  I did a search for PPD allergies and found a color -- Goldwell.  In the Goldwell line, there is a temporary color which works.  This is not available for retail sale -- I have my salon do it.  She now actually uses the Goldwell permanent color and does 2-3 colors with highlights and lowlights.  You have to call salons in your area to see if they use this line.  Many never even heard of PPD allergies to hair color (which means they're not current with their info), but you will find a salon that can do it.