It is indeed very frustrating to discover that your hair has begun to go white. Premature hair graying is a common problem and you will see a lot of people treating the problem by sticking to a strict routine of hair dying. However, hair coloring is expensive particularly when you have lots of hair to color.
Here are ten possible causes of premature hair whitening and the possible treatments.
1. Genetic Factor
Premature hair graying is largely based on genetics. Generally, your hair color is determined by your family tree. The genetics determine the melanogenic aspect for you according to the time when your parents got their hair white. This signifies that you can look directly at your parents’ hair to see your own outcome in term of white hair. In other words, you are following your parents’ trademark. Though, this is common for men and women, most people don’t get their hair entirely white.
2. Less Vitamin Intake
Taking balanced diet is very important to live a healthy lifestyle. There are many diet related factors including vitamin deficiency that affect your hair health. Particularly, if you deficient to Vitamin B12, you are likely to get white hair even at a young age. Also, having unusual white hair is a sign of the likelihood of B12 deficiency which needs to be confirmed by appropriate medical tests. Use eggs, cheese, beef, yogurt, fish etc to get the adequate amount of this vitamin.
3. Hypothyroidism
Thyroid is an endocrine gland that can affect the entire system of metabolism. A very slow or underactive function of thyroid usually triggers to de-pigmentation of hair. Therefore, getting thyroid checks is a good idea to determine if your hair is turning white. When it comes to hair health, even a little subnormal thyroid function can show its effects on the scalp. For treatment, see your physician and switch to healthy diet options including iodized salt, carrots, fish and bananas.
4. Harmful Addictions
Several unhealthy addictions such as consuming alcohol and smoking can lead to premature hair graying. However, you can reverse these effects to get fruitful results by quitting drinking and smoking. Remember, you can't reverse premature white hair that is developing because of genetic factors or any diseases but you can certainly reverse undesirable effects of unhealthy life style on your hair.
5. Unbalanced Diet
In order to have a healthy body and healthy hair, make sure that you eat a well balanced diet that can get you all the nutrition that your body needs. A diet rich in nutrition can leave a positive effect on your overall health as well as combat premature hair graying to a great extent. Therefore, your hair can shine naturally and stay in their color even at an old age.
6. Fluid Intake
Your body needs to stay hydrated and so does your hair. Make sure you take as much fluid intake as possible for the best growth and nourishment to your body and hair. However, this doesn't include harmful drinks such as alcohol, tea or coffee because they would work as a harbinger to hair dis-pigmentation. For that reason, avoid excessive use of certain types of drinks to avoid retarding of hair growth and hair graying.
7. Sudden Trauma
Your physiological health is as essential as your physical well-being. A sudden trauma or emotional shock due to an accident or any bad news etc can be havoc for hair well being. Even though, this concept has been controversial to some people, scientists still believe that a mental shock can lead temporary retarding of hair growth. In such cases, healing is conditioned upon time, and mental and emotional treatment is provided to the patient.
8. Weber’s Syndrome
Sometime, hair graying also occurs because of certain genetic diseases or autoimmune. Weber's Syndrome is an uncommon condition which stays irreversible and ends with an early death of the victim. The victims of certain disease start indicating senile behavior as early as they reach teen age and look like a 60s-old man or woman even at the age of 20s.
9. Hormonal Imbalance
It is one of the major white hair causes. The endocrine organ of the body releases hormones that are important to keep the body functioning in a complex manner. Therefore, even a small imbalance in hormonal function or secretion can cause distraction to the overall body balance. It is scientifically proven that hormonal problems trigger premature hair graying. A proper medication along with a healthy diet can effectively deal with the hormonal imbalances and reduce hair problems like hair loss and hair graying.
10. Anemia
This condition is associated with many bad outcomes including hair problems. Hemoglobin deficiencies lesson blood supply to hair follicles and cause hair damage and premature hair graying. Once diagnosed, Anemia should be treated without a further delay so that you can counter all of its side affects including hair loss and hair dis-pigmentation.
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Thank you for the input, Maryann.
February 16, 2017 - 4:30pmThis Comment
Hello KashafHas,
Welcome again to EmpowHER. Thank you for addressing the issue of premature greying and possible causes.
Premature greying is largely linked to genetics. Hair follicles contain pigment cells that produce melanin. When your body stops generating melanin, hair presents itself as gray, white, or silver.
Race and ethnicity play a role in the graying timeline, too: Whites typically start to notice gray strands around age 35, while African-Americans tend to be 40 when it begins. About 50 percent of people have half a head of gray by the time they're 50.
Regards,
February 16, 2017 - 9:08amMaryann
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