The colour of our hair is created by the pigment-producing cells, referred to as melanocytes, positioned in every hair follicle. Within the technique of producing the pigment for our hair, these cells additionally produce another chemical compounds, one in all which is hydrogen peroxide (sure, the stuff that bleaches your hair). After we’re younger, our our bodies additionally produce enzymes to neutralize that hydrogen peroxide and different free radicals so our hair retains rising in with shade. As we age, nevertheless, these neutralizing enzymes develop into much less lively than they as soon as had been, which implies that hydrogen peroxide begins to construct up and sap shade from our hair, leaving it a stunning shade of grey—and, finally, white, as soon as the strand has misplaced all its pigment.
Though most grey is expounded to a pure a part of the growing old course of, a major environmental issue is UV publicity, which may speed up hair growing old. One study—on mice, not people—demonstrated that not solely did UV publicity produce grey hairs, nevertheless it additionally decreased the diameter of the hairs and shortened the shafts of the roots. To be extra particular, exposure to UVA rays (these longer wavelengths) damages hair pigment, whereas UVB publicity (shorter wavelengths) damages hair proteins, particularly keratin. So daylight, which carries each UVA and UVB, is a double-whammy for hair injury.
Along with UV publicity, different way of life components contribute to going grey, like smoking, anemia, poor vitamin, low B nutritional vitamins, and untreated thyroid situations, says Hadley King, MD, a dermatologist primarily based in New York Metropolis. Genetics can even play a task; in case your dad and mom went grey at a youthful age, you probably will too.
One contributing issue that may be a bit extra in our management is stress. Scientists discovered that the physique’s “combat or flight” response can contribute to turning hair grey. Bear in mind these pigment-producing cells, the melanocytes? Once you’re beneath stress, you launch a hormone referred to as norepinephrine, which principally causes your physique to enter overdrive—and burn by means of stem cells at a a lot sooner price. Which means, as your hair’s pigment-producing melanocytes die off (they usually reside about 3 to five years), there aren’t sufficient lively stem cells to switch all of them… and a few hair begins to develop in with out pigment, i.e. flip grey.
Is reversing grey hair attainable?
Possibly, particularly in the event you’ve simply found your first strands of silver. “We all know that in intervals of stress, particular person hairs in your head can go grey. After which they’re going to flip again as soon as the stressor is eliminated,” says James O’Sullivan, Ph.D., a postdoctoral analysis affiliate in developmental biology and cell metabolism, who has been concerned in research on the subject.
