The Free From Living Awards 2024
They have been a long time coming, but I’m very happy that — finally — I have managed to launch the Free From Living Awards, which opened for entry earlier this week, and the idea for which first formed in…
Read more
free from skincare
Nickel free self-tanning products
We’ve covered nickel tested hair dye and nickel free make-up, so let’s look at self tan for those with nickel sensitivities — that is, tanning creams, tanning waters, bronzers, and similar products such as bronzing oils. As always, when it comes to natural…
Read more
PPD free hair dye
If you have allergy to PPD / paraphenylenediamine or are looking to color or dye your hair without using PPD you will find that most PPD-free products fall into one of three categories. One exception is the innovative Hairprint system — but…
Read more
Nickel tested natural hair dye / color
When it comes to cosmetic or haircare products, it is the act of colouring the hair, face and body which carries the greatest risk to those with nickel allergy — be it through make-up, fake tan, or hair dye. Given…
Read more
Nickel free makeup
Nickel compounds are not permitted in cosmetics, which is reassuring if you are one of the one in eight women who have a nickel allergy. However, trace nickel contamination is accepted to some extent by regulators, as low levels are…
Read more
Salicylate free cosmetics
Salicylates are compounds naturally found in the plants we consume — many fruit, vegetables, herbs and botanical extracts are rich sources, as are toothpaste and mouthwash, as are aspirin, other painkillers and cold/flu medication, which sometimes contain synthetically derived salicylate…
Read more
Covid and hair dye allergy
Occasional reports have been surfacing during the Covid pandemic of an increased incidence of allergic responses to hair dye products, and the issue arose again this week, widely reported in the mainstream media, including by the BBC. I have written…
Read more
Food allergens in cosmetics — time for regulation change?
Milk is not an ingredient you expect to find in a bath bomb, and for 13-year-old Emelia, what was a planned bath time treat, turned into a severe milk-allergy reaction and hospitalisation. She has bravely shared her milky bath-bomb nightmare…
Read more
Chemical allergies — is worse to come?
There is a concoction of potentially hazardous chemicals on our shop shelves, many of which end up in our homes. A lot of them perform vital services — disinfecting our work surfaces, for example — and it would be difficult…
Read more
Henna and PPD
PPD, or paraphenylenediamine, is a chemical used in most permanent hair dyes, especially the darker types. When mixed with an oxidiser (typically hydrogen peroxide) and applied, it penetrates shafts of hair and transforms into an oxidised form whose molecules are…
Read more