Hair That Turns Gray – Beauty And Maturity

Hair that turns gray is white or silver hair that appears over time. Believe it or not, it affects people’s lives so much that there are songs and poems that refer to it as the coming of adulthood. Gray hair represents beauty and maturity. 

What exactly is gray hair?

Hair that turns gray is made up of patches of hair that appear gray, white, or silvery.

Hair gets its color thanks to a pigment called melanin. Its role is to protect the skin from UV rays and any type of invisible light. It is the same substance that gives your eyes and skin its color.

Melanin is produced by melanocytes. These are cells that make two types of melanocytes, namely eumelanin for brown and black tones and pheomelanin for yellow and red tones.

These pigments, with their many variations and combinations, can generate an infinite number of different tones.

The absence of melanin causes gray to appear.

Why gray hair appears

Many studies have shown that its origin is genetic. The other crucial factor is age, as gray begins to appear as cells age.

• A hair has a lifespan of 3 to 6 years, after which it falls out.
• When the cells have aged and can no longer produce melanin, a new white hair will emerge.

• When one gray hair falls out, the next one will inevitably be white too.

When gray hair appears

Over time and as the body ages, melanocytes lower the production of melanin.

It starts with the hair on the head and later spreads to the rest of the body. Of course, there are also exceptions where genetics come into play and they show up much earlier.

Statistics

Let’s look at some statistics about gray hair:

• These hairs appear earlier and in greater amounts in Caucasian people. Asian and dark-skinned people tend to turn gray later on.
• Men are grayer than women.
• Gray hairs come out in several at once. This creates the illusion that if you take one out, more will grow.

Does worrying cause gray hair?

There is no conclusive research that can show that stress is a factor in the appearance of gray hair. Apparently stress does cause hair loss and the first hairs to fall out are the hairs with color.

Gray hair in men and women

Accepting gray hair is usually a complicated subject. Hair that turns gray is a sign of aging.

In the West, there is a rejuvenation craze that prompts us to slow down this natural process. No one wants wrinkles, sagging skin, progressive lenses or hair that is turning gray.

It’s not the same for men and women. A man with gray hair is often complimented as ‘interesting’, ‘mature’ (in a positive way) or ‘attractive’.

On the other hand, women are usually not so lucky. A woman with hair that turns gray is judged by her appearance. People assume she’s sloppy, doesn’t take time for herself, or doesn’t care about her appearance.

Sometimes gray hairs are fashionable. However, in the western world, they are still not seen as the best option culturally, from an aesthetic point of view.

But not everything is rosy for men either. If a man doesn’t like his gray hair, he usually takes it for granted. This is because it is not yet socially acceptable for men to dye their hair.

Most men who dye their hair hide this or do it secretly.

Myths about hair turning gray

Popular beliefs often prevail over science. Old wives’ tales are repeated over and over and convince most people.

Below are some of the most common myths:

• Hair that turns gray does not fall out.
  • Wrong: they fall out just like any other hair.
• Gray hair is gray.
  • Wrong: It’s an optical illusion. In reality, shades of gray consist of various yellow tones. The proximity of other colors makes them appear white, gray or silver.
• Exposure to sunlight leads to hair that turns gray.
  • Wrong: The sun bleaches the hair, which can lighten some hairs. This gives the impression that they are gray. Yet the sun in no way causes gray hair.
• Pulling out gray hair makes more come back.
  • This is also wrong: as we mentioned before, only one hair grows back for every old gray hair.