home :: what causes grey hair

What causes grey hair

I imagine you are reading this after nervously typing ‘what causes grey hair’ into a search engine.  Well sit back, relax, and let me tell you.  The first sprouting of grey hair and how fast you go grey varies amazingly. The majority of people start getting grey hairs in their late 20s but don’t actually notice them. If you want a one word answer to your question of what causes grey hair then here it is:

MELANIN.  This (well the lack of) is what causes grey hair.  Melanin gives hair its color, and grey hair is caused by the gradual reduction of melanin at the root of each hair called the hair follicle. The hair follicles (for one reason or another) produce less and less melanin, and the result is a loss of hair fiber color. What we actually call grey hair is not grey at all if you look at the individual hair fibers. Some hairs have some color while others are virtually white. We say grey hair because the overall impression is something sad. Incidentally, blonde people are more prone to get a completely white head of hair in old age because their hair fiber has a very low amount of melanin in it to start with.