Gray hair and its typical triggers

While hair used to be primarily used to protect against the cold, nowadays, it is an essential indicator for most people that they feel attractive. Well-groomed and naturally shiny hair is associated with beauty in both men and women. Anyone who then discovers their first grey hair is often shocked at first. Finally, grey hair is generally associated with age and ageing. Even when you are very young, hair can appear grey for physical reasons. Why does hair turn grey?

cause of grey hair

From an anatomical-physiological point of view, hair is pigmented horn threads. This seems quite sober because the hair on the head is mainly given attention and care. They are treated with numerous shampoos, conditioners, treatments, and other cosmetics, especially for the hair to receive the predicate of being beautiful.

Hair doesn’t just grow independently; we usually associate our personality with our hairstyle. Grey hair usually does not fit into the ideal of beauty. If our hair turns grey, many attempts are made to convert the grey back into colour. To get straight to the point, grey hair is not grey but colourless. On the other hand, the colourless hairs appear grey to white to the human eye.

 

Grey hair: natural process

In terms of structure, our hair is divided into the hair root, which is not visible from the outside, and the visible hair trunk. Cells, so-called melanocytes, are located directly in the hair roots and are responsible for the colouring of the hair because the colour pigment melanin is produced in the melanocytes.

However, an essential prerequisite for producing melanin is that our body has sufficient amounts of tyrosine, an amino acid. If there is insufficient tyrosine, no melanin is formed either; air bubbles are stored in the hair shaft. And they look plain and simple grey. Over the years, it has been a completely natural process that the production of melanin slows down, and little by little, our hair has started to look grey.

Grey hair at 20

Incidentally, from a specific point in time, the melanin production is completely stopped, and the result can then be an utterly grey head of hair. Our hair greys usually begin at the temples until the entire head hair finally turns grey. Grey hair doesn’t have to be a cause for alarm at first. They are already in our cradle, so to speak, because the age at which the hair turns grey can also be traced back to a genetic predisposition.

Between the ages of 25 and 30, the discovery of the first grey hairs can be attributed to the natural ageing process. However, grey hair can also be a sign of serious illnesses and should be examined by a doctor if it occurs in your 20s, especially under your 20s.

 

Stress and nutrition as possible causes

Eating a balanced diet and avoiding stress may help hair retain its natural colour for longer. Because a nutrient deficiency, which an unbalanced diet can cause, may produce insufficient melanin. Acidification in the body could also be a cause of grey hair.

Whole grain products, fresh fruit and vegetables are rich in vitamins and folic acid and are therefore recommended for a balanced diet. On the other hand, drinking too much coffee and alcohol can have negative health consequences.

Bring optically new pigments into the hair with colour.

Even completely grey hair that is well-groomed can look attractive. However, those who still feel more comfortable with colour on their head at a certain age can optically store dyes in the hair by dyeing or tinting. However, it should be noted that hydrogen peroxide is usually contained in the colouring agent when colouring. These can strain the hair and attack the hair structure. If you decide to do it anyway, professional dyeing by a specialist is recommended.

An alternative to colouring can also be the so-called renaturation. Here, results can be achieved that come very close to the original hair colour and thus radiate naturalness. However, this method is controversial due to the presence of lead acetates. In addition, only the colour results of brown and black have been achieved so far.