The passing of the years is a fact that no one can escape, but neither stress nor anything aging is the only cause of gray hair. Although there are anti-aging treatments that can help to diminish its signs, its trace always ends up appearing in different manifestations that can arrive at an earlier age than we expect.
It is normal for people to start noticing the appearance of gray hair at a certain age. While some resort to dyeing, others decide to make gray hair part of their look. But what causes gray hair to appear?
Gray hair Is Not Only Caused by Stress
Gray hair does not appear in everyone in the same way. Many factors alter the color of our hair, and ethnicity is one of them. “Depending on race, white and Asian people start to have gray hair at around 30, and black people at around 40. At 50, half of all people have a significant amount of gray hair,” says the dermatologist.
However, the main reason is the phenomenon is related to melanocytes, the cells that produce melanin (the protein that gives color to hair and skin). As the ability of melanocytes to produce melanin decreases, the hair begins to turn white. Most of the time, the appearance of gray hair is related to age, but genetic factors can also play a role.
That is why when hair falls out, and when it comes back, it grows white. This growth is not uniform: it may appear first on some parts of the head and body before others. Although, Harvard Health Publishing cites some diseases and conditions that may be related to the appearance of gray hair in young people. These include vitamin B12 deficiency, vitiligo, and thyroid disease.
What Other Factors Favor the Appearance of Gray Hair?
External Factors
In addition to this, there are external factors, such as situations in which our nervous system is altered. The hair cells that produce pigment can degenerate when a person is stressed. And this stress, in turn, can trigger a condition called telogen effluvium that causes hair to fall out much earlier than usual.
Diseases
Some causes cannot be fought against: “Methods have been discovered to reverse grey hair when they are due to some diseases or intense stress, but for those that are the result of age and melanin loss, for now, they are irreversible,” explains Virginia Sanchez.
Food
As for food, the dermatologist points out which foods should be included in our diet: “A diet that satisfies the needs of vitamin B12, which is present in foods of animal origin such as fish, meat, poultry, eggs, milk, and dairy products. Also, those that contain catalase, the antioxidant enzyme that favors the decomposition of oxygen peroxide. For this purpose, the consumption of sprouts such as wheat, barley, Brussels sprouts, alfalfa and other vegetable sprouts, raw fruit, avocado, and calf liver is beneficial”.
Beyond the fact that they can be avoided or not, what is clear is that white hair is imposed as one of the beauty looks that more and more young people are joining. Here are some of the products you need to aim for to keep white hair healthy and radiant.
This story was written in Spanish by Perla Vallejo in Ecoosfera
