The Association of Hair Coloring During Pregnancy With Pregnancy and Neonatal Outcomes: A Cross-sectional Study

Background: Hair colorant use has spread globally and rapidly in recent years. Concerns have arisen about the safety of hair dyes usage during pregnancy. The primary goal of this study was to examine the association between hair coloring during pregnancy, intrapartum, and neonatal outcomes.Methods: This explorative cross-sectional study was carried out at Talegani Teaching Hospital of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences from Jan 2017 to Dec 2019. Three trained midwives inquired mothers about the hair coloring history on the admission to the labor room and recorded intrapartum, and neonatal outcomes. Chi-Square test of independence with post hoc tests and Logistic regression analysis were used for data analysis. Odds Ratios with a 95% confidence interval and contributing effect sizes were reported. The significance level was set at α ≤ 0.05Results: We studied 2040 women aged 14 to 48 years. Most of the participants (75.24%) dyed their hair during pregnancy, and the majority (62.67%) colored their hair in the third trimester. There was no statistically significant association between hair coloring and neonate 1-minute (p=0.23) and 5-minute Apgar score (p=0.99). The logistic regression model did not confirm a rise in overall neonatal complications (NC) associated with hair coloring at any time during the pregnancy (OR:0.027 p<0.001). Higher rates of Low birth weight (LBW) were seen among those dyed their hair in the preconception period and third trimester compared to the woman who colored their hair in the first and second trimester (p<0.001).Conclusions: We observed associations between hair coloring and LBW, but there were no increased odds for NC. The evidence for recommending hair dye safety during pregnancy is still limited. Perinatal health professionals should advise their patients on possible adverse outcomes and inform them about the uncertainties about hair dyes.