Black/Fake BrownHenna Warnings!
There is no such thing as "Black Henna." Once applied it your final oxidized color should fall within the 'orange to chestnut brown' only. Because it is ALL natural, it should only show a natural earth tone. (Click Here to see Video Warning)
Update!
To avoid the “Black Henna” scare, some unsavvy artists are using brown hair dye in order to provide the stain colors wanted. PLEASE be sure that your stain starts out orange and darkens over time, and that the artist recommends several hours worth of wear instead of just an hour or so.
Reputable henna artists can and have no problem giving you information and ingredients used in their henna. Most artists combine and use all natural ingredients as well as make their own 'mudd' to use to obtain optimal color. "Black/Fake Brown Henna" stains immediately giving some people a quick way to make a quick buck, however, REAL 100% NATURAL HENNA must be left on the skin for a period of time. The stain will start a light orange and over a period of 24 hours, will darken and oxidize to it’s full color. It does NOT start out it’s full color upon application.
INJURY AND PERMANENT MARKS CAN RESULT
IF BLACK HENNA IS USED!
"Black Henna” contains a chemcial hair dye, like paraphenylenediamine (PPD), a coal tar dye and known transdermal toxin. PPD and similar dyes, found in leather and fur dyes as well as commercial hair dyes, can cause itchy, oozing, blistering skin and long term scarring. In other worst cases, organ damage results, along with permanent sensitization to even minute amounts of these dyes. PLEASE, if you have young children or are pregnant, please keep away from this carcinogen that can cause damage to both you and your baby!
The information below is an excerpt from this FDA site
http://vm.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/cos-tatt.html
Since henna typically produces a brown, orange-brown, or reddish-brown tint; other ingredients must be added to produce other colors, such as those marketed as "black henna" and "blue henna." So-called "black henna" may contain the "coal tar" color p-phenylenediamine, also known as PPD. This ingredient may cause allergic reactions in some individuals. The only legal use of PPD in cosmetics is as a hair dye. It is not approved for direct application to the skin. Even brown shades of products marketed as henna may contain other ingredients intended to make them darker or make the stain last longer.
In addition to color additives, these skin-decorating products may contain other ingredients, such as solvents.
How do I know what's in a temporary tattoo or henna/mehndi product?
Cosmetics including temporary skin-staining products that are sold on a retail basis to consumers must have their ingredients listed on the label. Without such an ingredient declaration, they are considered misbranded and are illegal in interstate commerce. FDA requires the ingredient declaration under the authority of the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act (FPLA).
How do I report an adverse reaction to a temporary tattoo or other cosmetic?
FDA encourages consumers to report any adverse reactions to cosmetics either to their nearest FDA district office or to FDA's Office of Cosmetics and Colors. Here's how:
To contact your nearest FDA district office, you can find their phone numbers on FDA's Web site. These phone numbers also are included in the U.S. Government listings in the Blue Pages of the phone book under United States Government/Health and Human Services.
To contact FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) Adverse Event Reporting System (CAERS), call (301) 436-2405 or email CAERS@cfsan.fda.gov.
If you have questions, concerns or want to learn more please post on the Henna Tribe Forum. We are a group of professional henna artists and enthusiasts dedicated to the safe use of natural henna and sharing of information regarding this ancient art.
