What Causes Gray Hair — And Can You Stop It From Happening?
Gray hairs — we all get them eventually. While some may choose to rock the gray locks, others will most likely be frantically typing ‘how to get rid of gray hairs’ on Google. Everyone deals with their grays differently and it’s down to personal preference, whether you want to slow down the process, cover it up, or embrace it. Here’s some of the factors that cause gray hair and ways you can treat it.
What causes gray hair?
Our hair has a natural cycle of growth and color which is continually regenerated, as your hair follicles age, they produce less color.
Genetics: For the most part, graying comes down to your family genetics and natural ageing. Look to your family to see when graying occurs for them because it’s most likely within your family genes.
Stress: Stress can have an effect on the age that you start getting grays. A 2013 study found that the depletion of stem cells in hair follicles and stress are connected, so if you’ve noticed some white hairs, your busy or stressful lifestyle could be the culprit.
Vitamin deficiency: Vitamins play a vital role in our hair health and growth. A deficiency in vital vitamins like vitamin B and A can weaken your hair cells and stunt natural color production.
Smoking: Smoking cigarettes has a large link with premature grays, smoking constricts blood vessels and can then reduce blood flow to your hair. This damages your hair follicles and can even cause some hair loss.
While some people may celebrate their grays, others may feel they are not suited to the color or just generally prefer themselves with darker hair tones. So, whether you want to try slowing down the process or want to touch up your grays with some great coverage we’ve got plenty of options for you to try out, starting with some lifestyle changes.
How to Get Rid of Gray Hair
While there is no way to completely stop your hair from graying, there are some natural lifestyle changes you can make, to help keep your original hair color for longer.
Cosmetic hair damage: Certain hair maintenance and care can be damaging your hair follicles causing them to lose color quicker, this includes:
- Bleaching
- Applying heat without a protectant or over-heating your hair, with straighteners or hairdryers – this is the same for prolonged sun exposure, so cover up with a hat or scarf
- Washing your hair too frequently
- Using shampoos or conditioners with harsh ingredients
Smoking: Smoking plays a huge role in graying — it has been found that smoking has a significant relationship in developing gray hair, therefore making it one of the most crucial lifestyle changes.
Vitamins and minerals: Vitamins and minerals play a vital role in our hair health and growth. Vitamins that support healthy hair are:
- Vitamin A
- B-Vitamins — one of the best known is Biotin capsules (Buy on Amazon, $8.99)
- Vitamin D
- Vitamin E
Understanding gray hair is vital, it’s also important to know it’s natural and different for everyone. If you want to get rid of gray hair, coverage and dyes are the best options, they are a quick change and make the biggest impact.
This article originally appeared on our sister site, Yours.
