Gray hair is really hair with reduced melanin, while white hair completely lacks it. That's partly because of a gradual decline in the number of stem cells that mature to become melanin-producing cells.
Grey hair should be a reminder of how wise you've become and what you want to do with the rest of your life while you continue to get grey.
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.
Scientists don't know exactly why some people go gray early, but genes play a large role. Also, a vitamin B-12 deficiency or problems with your pituitary or thyroid gland can cause premature graying that's reversible if the problem is corrected, Benabio says.
On occasion, gray hairs can be a sign of illness, such as thyroid disease or alopecia areata (a common autoimmune disorder). If you have other tell-tale signs, such as balding patches, let your healthcare provider know. However, don't panic — these are rare and little cause for concern.
It can be a shock to find your first gray hairs on your head, especially if you're only in your 20s. But women's expert Dr. Kirtly Parker Jones says a few gray hairs is perfectly normal, even for women in their late 20s and early 30s. However, stress, genetics and other factors can play a role.
Lack of proper sleep and stress are main reason of premature greying of hairs. Such lifestyle increases the ageing process which in turn may affect the hair growth, volume and overall health.
Kraleti doesn't recommend plucking or pulling the hairs out. “If there is a gray hair you must get rid of, very carefully cut it off. Plucking can traumatize the hair follicle, and repeated trauma to any follicle can cause infection, scar formation or possibly lead to bald patches.”
Stress can cause hair to gray prematurely by affecting the stem cells that are responsible for regenerating hair pigment.
Some people develop their first strands of gray or white hair in their 30s or 40s, whereas others develop white strands in their 20s or teenage years.
Despite the claims made online and by product marketers, it's not possible to reverse white hair if the cause is genetic. Once your hair follicles lose melanin, they can't produce it on their own. As melanin production slows, your hair turns gray, and then white when melanin production has completely stopped.
Alopecia and grey hair are associated with COVID-19 Severity.
Vitamin or mineral deficiency — Any deficiencies of vitamin B-6, B-12, biotin, vitamin D, or vitamin E can contribute to prematurely going gray. Similarly, deficiencies in minerals like calcium, copper, iron, protein and zinc can also contribute to graying hair earlier than usual.
Genetics. Your makeup plays a big role in when (or if) you develop white hair. If you notice white hair at an early age, it's likely that your parents or grandparents also had graying or white hair at an early age. You can't change genetics.
Symbolism And Meaning Of Gray
Gray is the color of intellect and of compromise. It's a diplomatic color, negotiating all the distance between black and white.
The symbolic meaning of the color gray was mourning and repentence. Gray is the color of ashes and a punishment or penance was to walk barefoot in a town covered with ashes. Gray also has a Biblical meaning and is the Christian color for the season of Lent and closely associated with fasting and prayer.
“Some women will find their hair greying more fervently during the Menopause. There are lifestyle changes you can adopt to help prevent this from happening – namely, no smoking and a balanced diet containing lots of iron, vitamin D and the B vitamins.
Celebrity hairdresser Phil Smith explained that, unfortunately, grey hair is impossible to stop, meaning there's no actual way of preventing it before it sets in. He reveals, “As of right now, there is no easy cure or prevention for greying hair.
“What was most remarkable was the fact that they were able to show convincingly that, at the individual hair level, graying is actually reversible,“ says Matt Kaeberlein, a biogerontologist at the University of Washington, who was one of the editors of the new paper but was not involved in the work.
Gray hair grows when hydrogen peroxide builds up in your hair follicle. "This causes hair to bleach itself from the inside out," says Debra Jaliman, MD, a dermatologist in New York and spokesperson for the American Academy of Dermatology. Gray hairs are thicker and wirier, so your hair gets coarser as they multiply.
"Your hair follicles have pigment cells that make melanin. Melanin is a chemical that gives your hair its color. As you age, these cells start to die. When there is a lack of pigment, new hair strands grow lighter and eventually turn to shades of gray, silver, and eventually white," Friese explains.
It can be due to a dirty scalp, dandruff, infections like fungal infection of the scalp, e.t.c. It can be due to chemicals like hydrogen peroxide present in hair colors, which have a bleaching effect. Deficiency of nutrients like vitamin B. complex, copper, iron and iodine is known to cause premature graying.
Science of Grays
Your hair follicles have pigment cells that make melanin, a chemical that gives your hair its color. As you age, these cells start to die. Without pigment, new hair strands grow in lighter and take on various shades of gray, silver, and eventually white.
Smoking and Premature Hair Graying
In an observational study, Mosley and Gibbs [3] reported a higher incidence of hair graying in smokers over 30-year old than in nonsmokers regardless of age-group or gender (n = 606).
Even teenagers and people in their 20s may notice strands of white hair. The human body has millions of hair follicles or small sacs lining the skin. The follicles generate hair and color or pigment cells that contain melanin. Over time, hair follicles lose pigment cells, resulting in white hair color.