Not only is gray hair common and normal, it’s gorgeous. If you agree and you’re currently styling your gray hair in cuts and ‘dos that make the most of this chic and elegant shade, then don’t touch a single hair on your head, as the expression goes. But if you’re finding yourself on the opposite end of this spectrum and are starting to see little grays pop up here and there — and you are absolutely not pleased with this finding — you may be wondering if there’s anything you can do about it, aside from booking an appointment with a colorist or taking matters into your own hands at home with a box of store-bought dye.
It’s an interesting question, especially since we live in a time when we are constantly bombarded with advertisements for products, including for pills that claim they can reverse grey hair. Is it even possible to reverse grey hair — and how?
Dermatologist Dr. Dray explains that yes, you can actually reverse some grey hair, but not in the way you probably think.
Some Causes of Grey Hair
Your hair turns grey because it loses the pigment melanin as we age. Your hair is constantly going through different growing, resting, and shedding stages. And your hair follicles are actually quite high need, according to Dr. Dray, which is why you’ll notice if you’ve ever been hospitalized, severely sick, super stressed out, or have given birth, your hair follicles will pause while your body takes up all of the resources it needs to heal you.
Similarly, hair color is affected by what is happening in your body. If you have extreme stress, for example, scientists have found you can grow more white and grey hairs in the moment. Once your extreme stress is relieved, some of those hairs may actually grow back their original color — in that regard, you can reverse grey hair when they are appearing as a result of incredible stress.
Nutrient Deficiencies Can Cause Grey Hair
Oxidative stress and smoking can both be inflammatory, produce a lot of free radicals, and create premature grey hair. How is premature grey hair defined? Often as grey hair that appears in your twenties or thirties. By the time you are sixty, it is incredibly common to have grey hair, but finding a few grey strands early isn’t a sign of “impending doom,” Dr. Dray says, and it’s not something to be worried about.
Nutrient deficiencies can also cause premature grey hair. Often times, the cause is a deficiency in a type of amino acid that is responsible for giving your hair color. But people who lose weight quickly and engage in crash dieting can also experience hair shedding and a chance in hair color and texture — it can be brittle and prone to breakage. Vitamin B-12 deficiency is often linked to hair color changes.
In this case, it may be possible to reverse grey hair by eating a balanced, healthy diet and taking supplements (under a doctor’s supervision) that can help your hair.
Can Supplements Reverse Grey Hair?
Should you try to take supplements to reverse gray hair? In one word, Dr. Dray says “NO.” Unfortunately, no matter how great a supplement is at marketing itself as a gray hair miracle, there is no science behind any supplement that claims it can turn your gray strands back into brunette, blonde, or red strands. Hopefully, this will keep your money in your pocket and not give you false hope.
Grey is beautiful. But if you feel your grey are age-appropriate, or you suspect an underlying medical condition could be causing your greys, talk to a doctor.
