There are no treatments that are proven to treat (or reverse) gray hair. As researchers learn more about how the graying process happens, they may develop effective medications and treatments for gray hair.
Now a new study confirms what many have suspected and offers a bit of hope: stress can lead to gray hair and taking stress away appears to reverse the process, allowing white strands to return to the natural color at the root.
“While certain nutrient deficits and health conditions may spawn premature grey hairs, it's impossible to restore your natural hair colour if your greys are genetic or due to natural ageing,” Ziering said.
One can reduce gray hair by:
Consuming sufficient amounts of vitamins and minerals (e.g., B vitamins, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin A, copper and zinc). Eating healthy: eat lots of vegetables, fruits, nuts, white meat, and fatty fish. Minimize consumption of red meat and milk.
B-6 may help restore hair to its original color following an illness or deficiency. Para-Amino benzoic Acid (PABA) and Pantothenic Acid are part of the family of B-complex vitamins. Both of these vitamins are available at health food stores and pharmacies. Use them to postpone the onset of graying.
Vitamin B-12 is the most common culprit, with folate, copper, and iron deficiencies increasing your risk, too. Dietary supplements may help these deficiencies and you might see your natural hair color start to grow back after several weeks.
Typically, white people start going gray in their mid-30s, Asians in their late 30s, and Blacks in their mid-40s. Half of all people have a significant amount of gray hair by the time they turn 50.
Biotin has many benefits. It triggers hair growth, it treats hair loss related disorders, and it thickens and strengthens the hair. One of our favorite beneficial effects of Biotin is that is can reverse premature greying of hair.
Some studies have demonstrated that grey and ageing hair can recover its original colour when nourished by diets rich in zinc and supplements formulated with this element.
One of the best known vitamins for hair is the B complex vitamin. B complex vitamins such as B12, Biotin, and B6 are important for strength and colour of hair. Deficiencies of any of these nutrients are known to promote hair greying. B complex supplements are very useful in preventing greying.
Although the primary cause of premature hair graying (PHG) is considered to be genetic, certain environmental factors also play a role. Trace element deficiencies such as Vitamin B12, Vitamin D3, and calcium may also be associated with PHG.
'If you have a vitamin B deficiency, adding foods rich in B vitamins, or a supplement containing them, may be useful in stopping premature greying,' she advises. 'However, at present there is no way to delay when you are genetically programmed to turn grey. '
Vitamins B6 and B12 have also been proven to boost melanin production. Goddard says that vitamin B6, also known as pyridoxine, has been found to trigger the production of enzymes and chemical reactions that boost the metabolism of the hair proteins (keratin and melanin) in the hair follicles.
Gray hair is one of the universal signs of advanced age. More likely than not, at some point in your life, your hair will start to go gray. Some individuals can maintain hair color well into their older age, but most do not.
A new study shows that stress really can give you gray hair. Researchers found that the body's fight-or-flight response plays a key role in turning hair gray. Your hair color is determined by pigment-producing cells called melanocytes.
“Plucking a gray hair will only get you a new gray hair in its place because there is only one hair that is able to grow per follicle. Your surrounding hairs will not turn white until their own follicles' pigment cells die.”
Melanin deficiency is associated with vitamin deficiency. That's why you need to increase your vitamin intake through your food or vitamin supplements. Vitamin A, C and B12 are the most needed vitamins to increase the melanin production in your hair.
If genetics or aging is the cause, nothing can prevent or reverse the process. However, treating graying hair could allow color pigmentation to return if the loss is due to a medical condition.
It can be inherited from either parent. The color of our hair is determined by the form of hair pigment that we have. The pigment is actually produced along the hair shaft, and there are two main forms of hair pigment. There's eumelanin and pheomelanin.
Grey hair and genetics
The average age for grey hair varies greatly, and one of the main causes of grey hair in your 20s is genetics. The age at which a person's hair turns grey is influenced by the IRF4 gene, and one specific variant (rs12203592) is a marker for premature greying.
It's most common for graying to begin in your 30s, though some people spot a few grays in their 20s. If you think you're going gray unusually early, there are a number of possible reasons why. Smoking, for one, has been linked to the early onset of gray hair.
Since baking soda is a scrubbing agent, washing your hair with it can gradually strip the dye from your locks. Baking soda can lighten all hair colors, but it might take a few washes to get your hair to the desired color.
It features crushed violet pigments that neutralize style-ruining brassy and yellow tones. Hair stylists often tone bleached or blonde hair to neutralize brassy yellow and orange tones on bleached hair with a purple color. Purple shampoo is a great at-home solution for toning hair and preventing brassiness.
It is natural to lose melanin as you age, however, there are also a number of other reasons that might cause loss of melanin. However, it is not possible to restore your hair's natural colour if your greying is genetic and natural.