Common Causes Of Gray Hair
Hair is the crowning glory for a lady. It is strongly associated with manliness. It tells a lot about your personality & social status. From enhancing your beauty to complementing your features- everything goes easy with thick & lustrous hair.
Healthy hair comes in 4 different colors, including- black, brown, blond, red, etc. So, you have gray hair means your hair is not healthy enough to allow you to live a more fulfilling life. Gray hair is a trend now. As a result, being unintentionally on the trend is completely normal.
Everything changes with time. So, finding your hair changing its color is not so uncommon at all. Sometimes, the change in hair color happens with age & sometimes it happens for other reasons. By understanding the causes of premature gray hair, you can restore pigmentation.
This article reveals the common sources that contribute to gray hair. Let’s know those factors in detail.
Science of Gray Hair
Gray hair represents advanced age. It comes with a specific science that tells you will experience gray hair at some point in your life. No matter what different individuals say about gray hair, the science always remains the same. Basically, hair follicles contain melanocytes that play a key role in producing melanin pigments. This melanin pigment gives its color to your hair. As you age, the pigment cells start to die. With fewer pigment cells, it becomes difficult to produce enough melanin. The presence of low or no melanin gives your hair strands a transparent color.
Gray Hair: Causes
If your hair color is dark, then gray hair becomes more noticeable. The hair goes colorless at any age. Various factors are there to blame. Let’s become knowledgeable about those factors.
Genetics
Stress
Thyroid Disorder
Vitamin Deficiency
Smoking
Autoimmune Ailments
Genetics: Genetics is one of the prime causes of premature gray hair. The production & storage of melanin are highly regulated by genes. There are genes that severely impair melanin production & storage. If your gene is not of a kind that boosts melanin production, then unfortunately you will have to experience premature graying. All the members of a family share the same gene. So, if you look backward & ask your family members, you may find the same theory of graying. You can’t change the genetics. So, control other graying factors if your gene is not to blame for your gray hair.
Stress: Stress plays a pivotal role in quickening the graying process. Stress releases norepinephrine into the hair follicle. The release of this chemical empties the melanocyte stem cells that are responsible for giving color to your hair. When you experience more stress, your melanocyte will produce less pigment. A situation will arise when you find no stem cells that can create new pigment cells. In such a situation, your hair will turn gray rapidly.
Thyroid Disorder: Thyroid disorder leads to various hormonal changes. Hypothyroidism & hyperthyroidism are two of the changes caused by a thyroid disorder. The thyroid stays under-active in hypothyroidism & over-active in hyperthyroidism. And in both of these conditions, the thyroid fails to do its job properly. When the thyroid does not work in the right way & regulate your metabolism in a proper manner, every cell including the cells present in hair follicles gets affected. As a result of which your hair goes gray prematurely.
Vitamin Deficiency: One of the causes due to which your hair turns gray prematurely is vitamin deficiency. When your body lacks different vitamins, including- Vitamin B12, Vitamin B6, Vitamin D, Vitamin E, Biotin, etc., the production of melanin gets significantly affected, which accelerates the hair-graying process. So, always ensure your diet contains enough of these vitamins that can keep your hair healthy & prevent it from going gray early.
Smoking: There are many lifestyle factors that contribute to hair graying, & smoking is one of them. It is known to everyone that cigarettes contain nicotine & tobacco. When you smoke regularly, it starts narrowing the blood vessels. When blood vessels become narrow, the flow of blood to the hair follicles gets reduced. This is what lets you experience hair loss & premature gray hair.
Autoimmune Ailments: An autoimmune ailment is an unwanted state where your immune system attacks your own body. There are autoimmune ailments like- Vitiligo, Alopecia areata, etc. that attack hair follicles during the production of melanin. Besides causing pigment loss, they destroy melanin as well. The hair fails to get the color & becomes gray then. Sometimes, viral infections make the immune system overactive, which also contributes to premature graying of the hair.
Tips To Avoid Premature Hair Graying
There are no straightforward ways to prevent your hair from turning gray. But it is possible to decelerate the onset of gray hair. The restorative approaches you can try are stated below. Let’s have a look!
Follow some proven stress management tactics to limit your stress.
Smoking is injurious. Hence, quit that for all.
Stop using harsh hair care products & be nicer to your hair.
Always maintain a healthy diet & combat vitamin deficiency.
Have your thyroid checked by a medical practitioner.
The Bottom Line
Gray hair means melanin loss. And if it happens due to genetics, then you can’t reverse the process. However, you can mask the grays with root touch-ups, permanent & semi-permanent dyes. Contact a hair care professional & go for a color treatment at a trusted salon.
