What does grey hair mean?
What causes grey hair?
Where does grey hair come from?
Is grey hair caused by stress?
Is grey hair genetic?
What causes grey hair at a young age?
When do you get grey hair?
Can grey hair be reversed?
With age, your hair turns grey; that’s just a biological fact. But some of my friend’s parents have grey hair while others don’t, even though they are all in the same age range. Therefore, people don’t have this at the same rate. Some people color their hair to turn them into the original color, as grey hair is seen as a sign of aging. If you do decide to color your hair, make sure to use our Mane Caper solid-colored cape.
After all this, I was wondering what causes hair to turn grey at a premature age? Is it genetic? Is it due to environmental factors? Or is it a combination of both? Along with these questions, there were some basic questions as well about grey hair, which will be answered below. So put on a cool jacket like the Mane Caper mesh jacket and keep on reading!
What Does Grey Hair Mean?
Let us start with the basics; what does grey hair actually mean? If grey hair is something almost everyone suffers from, then why?
As people grow older, the pigment in the hair follicle known as melanin dies. When the pigment dies, the hair will have less melanin; therefore, it will turn transparent. White, grey, or silver hair are the most common colors. Grey hair is most visible in darker-haired people. Eventually, all the melanin will be gone, and your whole head will turn this color. Not only that, but premature grey hair also means that one or both of your parents had premature grey hair, and it was genetically passed down to you.
What Causes Grey Hair?
Now that we know what having grey hair means, you might be wondering, but what causes grey hair? We already know that genes play a role in the graying of hair but what else? Well, I wonder no more because this question will be answered below for you.
- Stress: One of the biggest reasons for premature graying is stress. Stress might be in the form of sleep deprivation, anxiety, change in appetite, and high blood pressure. All of this, directly and indirectly, causes hair to turn grey. A lot of studies like the study from New York University reported in Nature Medicine that stress is linked to grey hair. Oxidative stress is also one cause.
- Medical conditions: Some diseases like autoimmune diseases are also linked to premature graying, such as alopecia areata, vitiligo, and thyroid disorders.
- Vitamin deficiency: Vitamins that help the hair stay its natural color is vitamin B, biotin, vitamin D, and vitamin E. When these are lacking in your body, it affects hair color. One of the most important vitamins is actually vitamin B-12.
- Smoking: One big reason behind premature graying is smoking, as toxins in smoking damage the hair follicles, causing the melanin to die.
- Chemicals: Hair dyes and hair products have chemicals that damage melanin, such as hydrogen peroxide, which can be present in shampoos and hair products as well. So you need to be careful of the shampoos you use. Moreover, it can also naturally occur in your hair.
Where Does Grey Hair Come From?
We already know the causes for grey hair, but where does this grey hair come from? Is it new hair formed which is grey, or are your old hair that turns grey?
Firstly, grey hair is your own hair, so of course, grey hair comes from your scalp. The hair that regrows from your hair follicles that have lost melanin appear grey as they lack pigment. Therefore, your hair doesn’t actually turn grey; it grows grey when the previous hair has fallen out from the same hair follicle.
Is Grey Hair Caused by Stress?
As previously stated, grey hair is, in fact, partly caused by stress, but why? That question was not answered before, so I’ll answer it now.
According to a recent study in January of 2020, that was funded by NIH’s NIAMS, it was concluded that noradrenaline was the reason behind stress-induced hair graying. When there is an increased level of this hormone, it causes graying of hair. The experiment was done on mice, but we can assume that it will have the same results in humans too. Therefore, next time you are stressed, remember that it affects your body and causes your hair to turn grey prematurely.
Is Grey Hair Genetic?
Grey hair is caused by stress, and according to the previous section, we also know why. But is grey hair genetic as well? Yes, it is but then again, why?
Graying happens a lot of the time just because your parents or your grandparents had grey hair, too, and their genes were passed down to you. To determine whether your hair is turning grey early due to genetics, simply ask your relative when their hair started turning grey and match it with your own timeline. One gene that is responsible for premature graying is called interferon regulatory factor 4.
What Causes Grey Hair at a Young Age?
The article started with the question, what causes premature graying? And now we will finally conclude the answer. Actually, we already know what causes grey hair at a young age, its genes!
However, if you occasionally find one strand of grey hair, that does not mean your hair is graying. But if you see grey hair appearing at certain parts of your head, it means that your hair is starting to grey. Moreover, stress is also a factor in premature graying along with smoking. Oxidative damage also contributes to this phenomenon.
When Do You Get Grey Hair?
This article has been all about premature graying, but what is the healthy age for getting grey hair? At what age does the majority of the healthy population get grey hair?
Now, the interesting part is that different races have different ages at which they get grey hair. The majority of white people start to get grey hair in their mid-30s. However, Asians are a little later and start going grey in their late 30s, but African-Americans are the luckiest as they start getting grey hair in their mid to late 40s. On the whole, every race has almost 50% grey hair on the scalp by the time they turn 50. Another fact, it is stated that the chance of your hair turning grey increases by 20% each decade after you hit your 30s!
Can Grey Hair be Reversed?
Now that we have covered almost everything regarding premature graying, the last section answers the question of whether grey hair can be reversed or not?
I’ll be completely honest here, grey hair can’t be reversed once it’s already gone grey unless you dye it to keep grey hair in its natural hair color. While doing it, make sure to wear our Mane Caper long apron. However, gray can be reversed if it is not due to aging and genes and only because of vitamin deficiency or other problems that can be fixed. Once melanin production stops, it can not be made again; therefore, graying can not be reversed. Although, if you have premature graying taking proactive measures before your whole head turns grey might actually slow down the graying. Make sure to take lots of calcium, copper, iron, protein, vitamins, and zinc in your diet.
In conclusion, having grey hair is nothing to be ashamed of! In fact, nowadays, people color their hair to turn them grey as it is in fashion. Therefore, remember always to rock your looks without an ounce of regret.
Also, while you’re at it, do check our Mane Caper shop out! Thanks in advance.