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.
The pigment in our hair is caused by melanin— the same pigment that is also responsible for our skin color. Gray hair is caused by a loss in melanin, whereas white hair does not have any melanin at all. As you age, your hair produces less and less melanin that leads your hair to appear gray, and then eventually white.
The less melanin you have, the lighter your hair color. Gray hair has minimal melanin, while white has none. As you age, it's natural to lose melanin in your hair.
Hair that looks gray, white or silver actually is colorless. Hair color comes from melanin, a pigment produced by cells in the hair follicles. Over time, these cells suffer damage and become depleted, losing their ability to make melanin. This results in new hair without pigment — meaning, no color.
Vitamin deficiencies
Share on Pinterest White and gray hairs may start to grow at any age, and may be caused by a range of different factors. Any deficiencies of vitamin B-6, B-12, biotin, vitamin D, or vitamin E can contribute to premature graying.
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.
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.
Your hair turns gray or white from a loss of melanin, a pigment-producing component that produces melanocyte cells. These make up your natural hair and skin color. The less melanin you have, the lighter your hair color. Gray hair has minimal melanin, while white has none.
Albinism is a genetic abnormality in which little or no pigment is found in human hair, eyes, and skin. The hair is often white or pale blond.
Only about 4% of people have naturally gray hair. Mainly older people make up this percentage, as well as a few young people who have grown gray hair prematurely. Older people usually have hair that ranges from silver to gray. It is a natural phenomenon that comes with aging, and every person goes through it.
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.
Is White Hair Natural? There are many natural hair colors, including brown, black, blond, and ginger, but white color hair does not come under the list of natural hair colors. However, some people with albinism can have entirely white hair, and so can people with other diseases like vitiligo.
Can White Hair Turn Black Again? Genetic or age related greying of hair cannot be reversed. However, greying related to diet, pollution, bleaching and stress can be slowed down with a balanced diet and a good hair care regimen.
What is poliosis? Poliosis is when a person is born with or develops a patch of white or gray hair while otherwise maintaining their natural hair color. It can affect both children and adults.
“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.”
Don't assume that grey hair makes you look older
Hair naturally loses pigment as we age, but stylist Paul Falltrick points out that the notion that grey hair makes you look older is increasingly becoming a misnomer: "Grey shades can be stereotyped as ageing, but a clean-looking grey is stunning" he says.
People with albinism have a reduced amount of melanin, or no melanin at all. This can affect their colouring and their eyesight. People with albinism often have white or very light blonde hair, although some have brown or ginger hair. The exact colour depends on how much melanin their body produces.
For men having white hair was a sign of distinction, hinted at nobility, and was even a sign of virility. It couldn't have been more different for women. It was a sign of their deterioration with age, and the end of their fertility.
Takeaway. If your child has one or two gray hairs, it's probably not a cause for concern, but true premature graying in children and young adults might point to an underlying cause, like an autoimmune condition or vitamin deficiency.
As you go through the aging process, your hair might turn grey before going completely white. For some, this process is so drastic that the hair simply turns silver and then white. According to some hair color experts, what you see as grey is a product of the mix of your natural and white hair.
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.
Your hair doesn't turn gray — it grows that way.
A single hair grows for one to three years, then you shed it — and grow a new one. As you age, your new hairs are more likely to be white. "Every time the hair regenerates, you have to re-form these pigment-forming cells, and they wear out," says Oro.
Just like the hair on the head, the hair on the rest of the body, including the pubic area, is subject to graying. As people age, their skin produces less melanin. Melanin is the pigment responsible for giving skin and hair its color.
Aside from the time investment of a salon session, there's how long it takes to fully transition to gray hair, which is anywhere from six months to a year, Ferrara says.
Stress can cause hair to gray prematurely by affecting the stem cells that are responsible for regenerating hair pigment.