Hair Can Kill

Image of Pauley Perrette and Clint Catalyst at Hairroin Dark Sparkle Black Carpet Event, April 29, 2009 to support Los Angeles Youth Network – Photo Karen Marie Shelton – HairBoutique.com – All Rights Reserved

Some of the most obvious events which can kill humans include heart attack, stroke, cancer and auto accidents.

Of course you have super viruses like H1N1 which killed an estimated 284000.

There are also unexpected medical accidents like the one which allegedly took the life of Comedian Joan Rivers.

While you're making a list of deadly dangers consider the fact that hair can kill in a number of ways.

Death From Hair Dye

NCIC start Pauley Perrette was recently hospitalized from a surprising hair dye trauma.

The brunette beauty who plays Abby Sciuto  was the sudden victim of an allergic reaction to black hair dye which is known to cause serious problems for some.

In Pauley's case her reaction required a sudden trip to the emergency room (ER) where her head "swelled up huge like a melon".

Tweeting about her hospitalization due to hair dye may not seem all that deadly, but as Pauley tweeted "It can be fatal. People have died. For real."

In fact, people have died from horrific allergic reactions of a common hair dye ingredient, PDP, which is most commonly found in black dye, but may occur in other similar hair coloring formulas.

Image of Pauley Perrette and Clint Catalyst at Hairroin Dark Sparkle Black Carpet Event, April 29, 2009 to support Los Angeles Youth Network – Photo Karen Marie Shelton – HairBoutique.com – All Rights Reserved

Death Of British Woman Blamed On Hair Dye Reaction

Julie McCabe fell into a yearlong coma after coloring her hair at home.The 38-year-old estate agent collapsed with breathing difficulties ultimately suffering from heart failure and brain damage in 2011.

She lingered in a coma, finally dying almost a year later in 2012, leaving behind a husband and two devastated children.

Although there has been no conclusive proof, her family blamed paraphenylenediamine (PPD) the same chemical Pauley Perrette had an alleged reaction to.

Even there was no definitive link made with the L'Oreal hair dye product Mrs. McCabe used right before her breathing difficulties, an investigation was launched.

Hair Can Kill - Death From Hair Caught In Machines

In 2011 Yale undergraduate Michele Dufault, 22, was killed when her hair became caught in a lathe, whose rotate axis is used to hold materials like wood or metal being shaped.

The tragedy which befell Ms. Dufault has been known to happen to others. Kelly Nield suffered a near death machinery related accident in a North Wales factory which left her in the hospital for close to three months.

Ms. Nield's hair was photographed tangled in the machine where her neck scarf initially pulled her into the path of a conveyer belt which ultimately grabbed her hair and almost caused her choking death.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics which monitors deaths due to related machinery accidents publishes reports on deaths due to unfortunate factory and related machine deaths.

In their reports, the primary cause of human death is due to loose clothing which can get caught in a machine. However, they also note that hair can also be a death causing danger.

Veronica Lake - Warnings About How Hair Can Kill

Image of Pauley Perrette at Hairroin Dark Sparkle Black Carpet Event, April 29, 2009 to support Los Angeles Youth Network – Photo Karen Marie Shelton – HairBoutique.com – All Rights Reserve

During World War II at the urging of the US Government the famed actress, Veronica Lake, changed her trademark peek-a-boo hairstyle to encourage women working in war industry factories to adopt more practical, safer hairstyles.

Although the change helped to decrease accidents involving women getting their hair caught in machinery, doing so may have damaged Lake's career.

Some experts believe the hairstyles she adopted, which eliminated her sexy peek-a-boo tresses, ultimately cost her the initial popularity she enjoyed.

Trichophagia, Trichotillomania And Trichobezoar

Trichophagia is a syndrome involving the compulsive eating of hair most often associated with trichotillomania, which is hair pulling. In rare cases, someone suffering from trichotillomania who ingests the hair (trichophagia) may develop a hair ball known as a trichobezoar.

Just as some animals can suffer illness and potential death from the build-up of hair or fur balls in their gastrointestinal tract, humans who eat hair may also be afflicted. In random cases, humans can die from an extreme trichobezoar.

Death From Rapunzel Syndrome

An extreme form of trichobezoar occuse in which the "tail" of the hair ball extends into the intestines. It can be fatal if misdiagnosed. In some cases, surgery may be required to remove the mass.

A documented tricobezoar weighing 4.5 kilograms (9.9 lb) was removed from the stomach of an 18-year-old woman with trichophagia.

Serial Killers

Image of Pauley Perrette and Kaley Cuoco from The Big Bang Theory – Comic-Con 2010, July 22, San Diego, CA – CBS - All Rights Reserved

Hair can also indirectly kill you if you happen to have a hair color or style which is a target of serial killers. Take the famous case of New York serial killer David Berkowitz aka Son Of Sam, who famously targeted women with long brunette hair.

As a result, during the 13 months he targeted young women with long brown hair, many women fearful for their lives, dyed their hair blonde or cut it short as a protective measure.

Hair Can Kill At The Movies

A 2007 Japanese horror film, titled Exte, which is Japanese slang related to hair extension, involves hair stolen from the dead body of a girl with voluminous black hair. In the plot, a man with a hair fetish sells hair extensions to hair salons and hairdressers.

What's unknown to the hairdressers buying the hair, is that the hair was stolen from the dead girl.They also don't know, until it's too late, that the hair is haunted, coming alive after it's applied.

Pauley Perrette - CBS - All Rights Reserved

Naturally since it's a horror film the haunted hair extensions cause insanity or death to the wearers of the dead girl's hair.

Summary - Hair Can Kill

Although there are several documented reports of how hair can kill, ranging from hair dye reactions to chocking due to machinery accidents, hair can kill in unexpected ways.

Death from a hair ball or haunted hair extensions or serial killers seem totally unexpected.

The morale to this hair story? Always be aware of your hair and how it might be an instrument of danger or death.

When using any of chemical preparation on your hair, either at home or in a salon, always have a patch test to determine if there might be a reaction.

Finally, when in doubt, don't do it. While hair always grows back, human death is not currently reversible.