Does Henna have mercury in it?

[Symphony]

I suggested henna to one of my friends who dyes her hair red frequently and was damaging it, and she said that when she brought it up with her hair stylist, the stylist said henna is bad for you because it has mercury in it. I can find scientific journal article titles when I google "henna mercury", but the abstracts are unavailable to me for some reason. Anyone heard of this or have evidence of the harm or harmlessness of henna?

[Seeshami]

If it is not BAQ yes it is possible. Henna For Hair has a great thesis or dissertation on it.

[Symphony]

I am looking through the "hennaforhair" website and can't find any mention of mercury anywhere as of yet. Can you link me?

[Seeshami]

http://www.hennaforhair.com/freebooks/ Is the book. I haven't read it specifically for mercury but it will talk about chemicals in henna vs certified BAQ henna

[browneyedsusan]

FWIW: A lot of hairstylists have some squirrely ideas about henna. (Mine can't believe it doesn't wash out, or that it takes hours to "process".) Some henna is mixed with all sorts of nasty stuff. --I don't know about mercury, specifically.-- Still, it's fairly easy to find 100% pure BAQ (body art quality) henna on the internet. Read the label, then you know what you're getting. Hennaforhair.com and hennasooq.com both have pure henna. (Analogy: 100% pure butter is available in the grocery story, but you'll have to do some label reading to find it.)

Hairstylists don't know about henna, or they've been misinformed. (Dog analogy: If you'd have told me I'd have 2 pit bulls and a lab mix in the house with my children, and laugh when they get to play growling and wrestling, I'd have told you were out of your mind. Yet, here I am; and there they are! I've had lots of dogs, and these are the most affectionate of any I've ever had.) If your friend wants her hair red forever, henna is the way to go.
:thumbsup:

[bunnylake]

My sister is a stylist and it even says in her text book from cosmetology class that all plant based hair dyes contain harmful chemicals and will destroy hair... and this is simply not true at all. Hair stylists are taught a lot of misinformation about natural hair care, unfortunately. I'm not sure why. Pure henna is completely safe and healthy to use.

[swearnsue]

ROTFL... don't put henna on your hair! It has chemicals in it!!!!! lol So instead use this nice safe chem-o-color stuff!

[lapushka]

Maybe it's due to the fact that henna isn't a checked substance; not checked for consistent good quality. You all assume that BAQ is in deed quality, when in some cases it may not be. Even those selling, the most reputable sources just buy big lots of what is assumed to be good quality. But who checks these things. Nobody. And that's what I'm saying, and maybe that's why hairdressers are taught what they're taught.

[Shatam1]

Maybe it's due to the fact that henna isn't a checked substance; not checked for consistent good quality. You all assume that BAQ is in deed quality, when in some cases it may not be. Even those selling, the most reputable sources just buy big lots of what is assumed to be good quality. But who checks these things. Nobody. And that's what I'm saying, and maybe that's why hairdressers are taught what they're taught.
Lapushka, I couldn't have said it better:) very true. I grew up in Egypt and henna shrubs and trees were planted around more fragile plants to protect them from insects and aphids, as it repells them so there is no need for chemical pesticides. So when vendors claim that their henna is organic I just :rolleyes:

[hairpleasegrow]

ROTFL... don't put henna on your hair! It has chemicals in it!!!!! lol So instead use this nice safe chem-o-color stuff!

Well said! I don't even want to know what chemicals your hair stylist is exposed to on a daily basis

[maadlen]

I suggested henna to one of my friends who dyes her hair red frequently and was damaging it, and she said that when she brought it up with her hair stylist, the stylist said henna is bad for you because it has mercury in it. I can find scientific journal article titles when I google "henna mercury", but the abstracts are unavailable to me for some reason. Anyone heard of this or have evidence of the harm or harmlessness of henna?

This is my experience with henna. In2007 I started using henna in Australia and I was very satisfied. The color was wonderful. I moved back to my home country and I wanted to order some henna online. On the official facebook page of Nazeer henna, which was supposed to be 100 percent natural, a lady wrote that she tested the product after she used it many years, because she had headaches, and it had mercury. I stopped using henna and started researching. An article says that only premixed henna is dangerous, but I am still not convinced. You could try Rennaissance henna which is supposed to be organic.

[Crabbyco]

Henna is from countries that don't regulate products to death like they do here in the States. Just because it says on the package that it's pure henna doesn't make it so. Buying from a trusted source is the only way to go. But still beware of what your getting; does it look right, not too green, not brown. Does it smell right? Are they claiming that you will get any other color than red/orange?
The other problem is that hair stylists are trained in schools that are driven to sell a product. So ya, "Our chemicals are good and safe. Everything else is bad and damaging."

[mira-chan]

Pure henna plant powder doesn't have mercury. Some companies add things as filler to make production cheaper so those could have additives including mercury. It's best to go with a trusted brand/supplier so that you are not going to get adulterated henna.