Sunday, October 25, 2009

Remembering a lecture

I have hesitated writing this posting for some time. I just don't know what to say without offending anyone, and if you know me, that is something that bothers me a lot. Everyone is free to form their own opinion, and I hope I hear some opinions.

What is it with women? Everything is more difficult, including watching your own head of hair grow gray. I mean, I can just look back into my family tree and know it is inevitable. But, let's go back a few years. I had the privilege to work as a secretary, transcriptionist, "go for " for a very intelligent and talented dermatologist. His speciality was removing birthmarks from babies and small children, but he was expert in many other fields of medicine.

Dr. H's one lecture to me, there were several, was to not use chemicals on my head, i.e. permanents, color dyes. His sway was that if you put the nicotine patch on your skin and the chemicals give the satisfaction of nicotine, why wouldn't chemicals on the scalp seep into the body and do 'whatever?' It made sense to me. In fact, other than once or twice, I have never colored my hair, but I did go through the permanent phase in the 80's.

So, every time I get a haircut, I remember what Dr. H said and stay away from colors. Until three weeks ago. I had not had my hair cut the entire time I was in Montana, so it had been 14 weeks. It was time for something. The trend is to now use "organic" colors without ammonia and therefore they are less harmful. So, I went 'caramel with highlights' and I really like it. It is maybe not such a great difference that it is noticeable, but I know that they gray is gone. This is not the permanent kind that will show my gray roots in several weeks time. It is temporary and when the time comes, I just might not even do it again.

Now, here is the interesting part. I just read this morning in a hometown newspaper that a woman who owned a beauty salon and two of her employees all got breast cancer within a short period of each other. What a shock! The owner researched and made big changes in her salon. All hair treatments are now organic. She isn't sure if this will make much difference, but she is betting on it.

One more reason why women can have a tougher time of it; or is it because I am a woman and closer to the reality of it all.

16 comments:

  1. Great post - I'll be on the lookout for organic color from now on.

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  2. I'll be watching for the organics also...:-) interesting post!!!

    ~ Susan

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  3. Interesting - I've gotten my hair dyed for soooooo long now. And not because I've turned gray, but because my natural color has become so drab. I'll be sure to ask my hair dresser about organic dyes.

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  4. So interesting Susan...wish I would of read this sooner. I too have not had my hair cut or highlighted in three months. After being in Montana so long, I was looking like the bush woman of Montana...LOL. Seriously...I couldn't waith until I got into my hair gal. Just had my cut and color last Friday...didn't even think to ask about organic color, I will next time. Thanks for the heads up my friend!!!

    Having a wonderful time with Dustye and all the jewelry this week. The sales have been great!

    Hello to the Trout!

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  5. Susan, I used to have my hair woven with color, but decided ten years ago that it was too costly and too much trouble. Now I am a natural woven gray. lol. Good point on the health risks.

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  6. Not only interesting but also informative. I have some folks I want to share this with. Thanks!

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  7. Wow...shocking and interesting. Thanks so much for keeping us informed.
    Sam

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  8. More and more the research is proving that it is the toxins in our lives that are the cause of most disease...so the more we know and the less we use of them...the better off we'll all be..... Mother Nature colours my hair....

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  9. Susan thank you for visiting my blog...I sent you a email and realized by reading your blog it wasn't Homestead, Fla...Sorry...Thank you for the information about the organic dye...Mine is turning grey and losing the hair to...Don't like that...UGH...Lisa

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  10. Anonymous3:21 PM

    well-- you know how long I have colored my hair. Yes, I know about the incident with these hairdressers- but people working in statistical data would tell you that it could be a whole host of chemicals that they work with that could affect them, such as: straightening treatments, perms ( they smell bad enough), hair spray (gee that goes on your head too). And think about this, they are exposed all the time, not the one time you go in to have your hair worked on. I would not go bonkers over this.
    By the way, your hair looked great (and sorry graying hair advcate ladies)you looked 10 years younger. I speak as a daughter of a white haired mother who always was complimented on her hair and her looks. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. For me, it is give me that jar of dye.
    Laurie E

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  11. And Laurie, your hair always looks great..whatever the color may be. Thanks.

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  12. Anonymous4:08 PM

    i havent done the coloring thang for many moons... easier on the budget and spirit both..... i think the lifestyle and "head set" i now have .. it's not even something i think about... also since moving to montana.. we cut our own hair.. something i never would have even thought of in my "prior" life:)

    gp

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  13. Anonymous5:03 PM

    My theory is the skin absorbs what is on it. That includes deodorant & its chemicals. I once thought those chemicals on the arm pit can affec lymph system and the nervous system. Once I read the aluminum can be a part of dementia. Interesting to snope that theory. CZB

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  14. I never thought that these hair chemicals could cause cancer. There might also be other factors outside the salon that could have contributed to the breast cancer. But it was good that they switched to all organic.

    I do believe in growing old gracefully but at the moment I like to get high lights from time to time. I need a pick-me-up from time to time and when I change my look I always feel better. Change is always good. :-)

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  15. Anonymous9:03 PM

    Living can give us cancer. if you begin to add up all the chemicals we are exposed to, the things our houses are built with, the additives in our food, the chemicals in our water and our favorite beverages etc. -- it could all be a ticking time bomb. Then of course there is the sun. Yikes-- how are you going to get rid of that one? Yet, we continue to smoke 'knowing' that it causes cancer. No maybes there. It might be how often one is exposed as opposed to that one is exposed.
    another dye job

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  16. You can't go wrong with the organic color. I need my highlights..cause my grey looks so drab..if it would only just turn a beautiful silver grey all at once:)

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