HennaTattoos.com » Black Henna

Jagua ~ The Traditional, Natural Alternative to ‘PPD’

Aileen — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 12:20:21 +0000

Thankfully these days there is a safe and natural alternative to the black stain achieved with PPD products. Jagua is a fruit from the Latin American Rainforest, it has been used for hundreds (if not thousands) of years by the Rainforest Tribes to decorate their skin with really amazing black body art. You have probably already seen this body art on many TV documentaries, like (BBC), its possible that for some years people have actually assumed that the body art was permanent tattoos because they actually look so similar.

We are proud to be at the forefront of the new jagua body art industry! You can find out more about Jagua from our sister site The first Jagua Body Art website!

Avoiding ‘PPD’ (Black Henna) In The Marketplace

Aileen — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 12:06:24 +0000

How To Spot 'PPD' When It Is Mis-Sold As A Safe Body Art Service Or Product, usually under the title 'Black Henna'.

Stay Away From Products That:

Claim to be ‘Black Henna’
Have henna powder + coal tar dyes listed as part of their ingredients.
Have henna powder + metallic salts listed as part of their ingredients.
Have any of the names of PPD, as described above, in their ingredient listing.
Claim to be ‘Black Henna’ and have no ingredients listed
Advise you to possibly seek medical attention, steroid creme etc… in the ‘rare’ case of an allergic reaction.
Contain a greyish – purple coloured powder that you need to mix with water.
Advise you to mix with plastic/wooden utensils, avoiding contact with metals.

Stay Away From Any Service Offered Where:

The artist claims to be applying ‘Black Henna’
The artist advises against working on children.
The artist advises you that in very ‘rare’ circumstances some people ‘may’ be allergic to the product… and ‘may’ need steroid crème from the doctor/pharmacist
You can see the colour on the skin underneath the paste is turning black before your eyes
You can see the artist mixing greyish-purple powder with water and then putting it into an application cone or bottle
Be extra cautious when the artist is a street vendor in a tourist resort – most skin reactions take place 10-14 days after initial application. So usually the uninformed tourist is already on their way home before the itching starts, hence the irresponsible vendor never has any come back and continues to injure & scar countless more tourists, making money at their physical expense.
Don’t assume either, that just because an artist is working from a reputable department store, hair salon or beauty salon that their products are safe. A lot of stores operate concessions, and a lot of irresponsible artists have been known to use PPD in these stores. Always check the product out that they are using. Any reputable Temporary Body Artist will show you their product ingredient listing, and will also confirm that……. There Is No Such Thing As Black Henna!

If all this information hasn't put you off and you are still considering using a product that contains PPD, then please read this about the use of prohibited PPD in body art products. Stay away from PPD, it can seriously damage your health.

para-Phenyldiamine, a.k.a ‘PPD’, a.k.a. ‘Black Henna’

Aileen — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 12:01:04 +0000

PPD is a commonly used abbreviation for the man made chemical dyes known as p-Phenyldiamine, p-Phenylenedimine, para- Phenyldiamine & para- Phenylenedimine. This dye does in fact stain the skin black. However it is very dangerous and it is also illegal to use it in any country where such safety legislation regarding cosmetic ingredients exists. It is strictly forbidden for use on the skin under European Cosmetic (Safety) Regulations. It is also forbidden for use on the skin by the FDA, in the USA.

It is illegal to use this substance on the skin for good reason. It is classified as an extremely toxic substance. It is dangerous to have any contact with the skin – it causes chronic excema, with raised lesions that lead to hyper-pigmentation & hypo-pigmentation. The more exposure to the product, the more extreme the reactions will be when they eventually take place. The chemical can also cause blindness, and is extremely harmful if ingested. It is also a carcinogenic.

People have been hospitalised from exposure to PPD both from direct contact on the skin from so called ‘Black Henna Tattoos’ and also from hair dyes.

This chemical is one of the coal tar dyes that was originally created for hair dye manufacture. It is still used in all manner of permanent hair dyes today. There is apparently no risk of PPD exposure to the skin, as all hair dyes are supplied with gloves to protect the skin on your hands, and the words ‘avoid contact with scalp’ to protect the skin on your head from contact with the chemical!

Please note, it is still legal in Europe and the USA to supply PPD in certain percentages in hair dye products – though given the serious risks involved with exposure we would advise that you check your hair dye ingredients for any PPD content before use.