HIGH ammonia ?

While it's obviously politically incorrect (given prevailing consumer bias towards low-ammonia formulas), is it unreasonable to suspect that the BEST formula for achieving solid gray coverage of new white roots on already-colored men's hair might very well be a high-ammonia formula permanent dye combined with a low-volume developer?

RATIONALE: ammonia is the primary agent responsible for prying open the hair cuticle so dye and peroxide can penetrate the shaft. A low-ammonia, high-volume approach depends upon making the most of the tiny bit of peroxide and dye that manages to penetrate the shaft. Conversely, a high-ammonia formula would blast the shaft wide open and allow the dye precursors + developer to easily flow inside. At the same time, some of the "old" dye (now a millimeter or two away from the scalp) would wash away, so there'd be less of a problem with buildup with repeat colorings. Finally, the lower-volume developer would probably decrease the total time, because the chemical reaction would "settle down" more quickly and shift from primarily lifting to primarily depositing sooner.

As I understand it, the main reason why ammonia is avoided is because of the cumulative damage it causes to hair. For a woman who needs to take good care of her hair because any given millimeter length needs to last for a year or two, that might be a Big Deal. On the other hand, for guys whose hair never exceeds 2 inches, and who might keep it short on the sides anyway, it might be a moot point.

Thoughts?

SInce you are keeping your hair short it should never be an issue. For anyone with longer hair, they should only be 'doing the roots' first , then combing the color through the ends for the last 5-10 minutes.