Holi is all about togetherness, fun, laughter and filling the air with colors of warmth and love. But this beautiful festival of colors could turn into a nightmare if you use cheap, toxic chemicals for playing Holi.The synthetic colors can contain toxic chemicals which come in contact with your skin and cause allergic reactions like itching, swelling and dermatitis.They can also cause redness, irritation and eye infections. Excessive use of dry black color (which contains lead oxide) can affect the kidneys.Chlorine iodine in purple color can trigger breathing problems like asthma.The synthetic colors can damage your hair and make it dry and brittle.
So, the best way to ensure a safe and joyous Holi is to make your own herbal colors.
HOW TO MAKE HERBAL COLORS AT HOME
You can make your own colors at home and protect yourself and your loved ones from toxic effects of the chemicals used in synthetic colors. Here are some easy to make herbal colors:
WET COLORS
-For yellow color, add one teaspoon of turmeric (haldi) to two liters of water and stir well. This can be boiled to increase the concentration of color and further diluted.
-For red color, add 2 teaspoons of red Sandal wood powder in one liter of water and boil. Dilute and use. Or else, you can use peels of ripe pomegranate (anaar) boiled in water give a red color.
-For pink color, soak kachnar (bauhinia variegata) flowers (pink variety) in water overnight, or boil for a pinkish color.Or else boil a few pieces of beetroot in a cup of water to create dark magenta colored water.
-For orange color, soak henna leaves in water overnight and use the water to play Holi in the morning.
-For black color, boil dried fruits of amla (Indian gooseberry) in an iron vessel and leave overnight. Dilute with water and use.
DRY COLORS
To make dry colors, take rice flour and add a few drops of food color. Add 2 teaspoons of water so as to make a thick paste. Leave it to dry and then blend it in a blender to use it as a powder color.
You can use henna powder separately or mixed with equal quantity of any suitable flour to get a lovely green shade.
For dry red color, dry red hibiscus flowers in shade and powder them to make red color. To increase the bulk add any flour to the powdered flowers.
For yellow color, mix two teaspoons of turmeric with 4 teaspoons of besan (gram flour). Turmeric and besan are extremely healthy for the skin.
So, go ahead and enjoy the festival of Holi with home made and safe herbal colors. Stay Happy, Stay Healthy with 1mg!