Today the European Commission amended an old Directive 76/768/EEC relating to cosmetic products. The new Directive 2012/21/EU concerns... hair dyeing products.
Did you know that ca 60% of European women and ca 10% of European men colour their hair? It seems that with every year Europeans become more concerned with their looks and the sale of hair dye products increases. Nowadays, it does not take much to go overnight from being a blonde to becoming a redhead, etc., and such decisions are often (sadly) not thoroughly thought through. Sadly, since as any cosmetic products hair dyes may contain unsafe (or even toxic) for consumers substances. On the one hand it may be worth it to invest in keeping consumers' hair healthy and pay for a good hairdresser and a good hair dye. However, how are even professionals to know which of the substances contained in the hair dyes could be dangerous? The EC helps out here by taking into account recent scientific knowledge and restricting the use of 24 substances often included in hair dyes (additionally to already existing bans on the use of certain substances). The Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) still needs to assess 45 substances that are suspect of having an adversary effect on consumers. More on hair dye products may be read here.