Gray hair is completely natural. According to Heathline, Your hair has a natural cycle of dying and regeneration. Hair follicles create less color as individuals age.
Although your genetics will dictate when you begin to gray, after you reach the age of 35, your aging hair follicles will most likely create a white or gray hair to replace the last hair that died.
While some individuals view gray hair as a sign of maturity and wisdom, many people believe that as their hair begins to gray, they appear older and would prefer the gray to fade away for a more youthful appearance. So, if you are someone that would prefer not having gray hair, here are a couple of tips, as outlined by Healthline.
Preventative Lifestyle Changes
If you are experiencing anxiety over possibly going gray, there are a plethora of easy lifestyle changes you can make to promote the retention of original hair color.
Vitamins are essential to our overall well being and health. Specific vitamins that can help retain hair color include:
- B-12 and Biotin
- Vitamin D
- Vitamin E
- Vitamin A
There are also plenty of minerals that might help maintain and repair hair, including:
- Zinc
- Iron
- Magnesium
- Selenium
- Copper
Stop smoking
Smoking can damage and shrink hair follicles.
Protect your hair using healthy hair care methods
- Protect your hair
- Don’t bleach your hair
- Use a wide tooth comb instead of a brush
- Don’t apply too much heat with hair dryers or curling irons
- Don’t wash too frequently
- Don’t use harsh shampoos and conditioners
Simple home remedies for gray or graying hair
- Coconut oil. Every other day, before bed, massage coconut oil onto your hair and scalp. The next morning, wash your hair as usual.
- Ginger. Every day, eat a teaspoon of fresh grated ginger mixed with 1 tablespoon of honey.
- Blackstrap molasses. Every other day, eat a tablespoon of blackstrap molasses (from sugarcane juice, not from beet sugar); it’s believed to reverse the graying process.
- Amla. Drink six ounces of fresh amla juice every day or massage your hair with amla oil one time each week. Amla is also known as Indian gooseberry.
- Black sesame seeds. Two to three times a week, eat a tablespoon of black sesame seeds to slow down and possibly reverse the graying process.
- Ghee.Twice a week, massage your hair and scalp with pure ghee (clarified butter).
- Amaranth. Three times a week, apply fresh amaranth juice to your hair.
- Wheatgrass juice. Drink one to two ounces of fresh wheatgrass juice every day or add 1 tablespoon of wheatgrass powder daily to your soups and smoothies.
- Fo-ti. In traditional Chinese medicine, fo-ti is taken internally as a supplement — 1,000 milligrams two times per day with food — to reverse the graying hair process.
- Onion. Blend an onion in a blender and then use a strainer so that you’re left with the juice. Twice a week, rub this juice into your scalp, leaving it in place for 30 minutes and then shampooing as usual.
- Carrot juice. Drink 8 ounces of carrot juice every day.
- Catalase. Eat foods rich in the enzyme catalase such as: garlic, cabbage, sweet potato, kale, broccoli, almonds, curry leaves, ashwagandha, almond oil, and rosemary.
Use natural hair dye
Herbs can be used to manufacture your own hair color. Because this sort of hair dye isn’t as strong as commercially available chemical dyes, you’ll have to repeat the process several times before seeing results. Suggested primary ingredients include:
- Blonde hair: chamomile flower tea, lemon peel, saffron, marigold flower
- Red hair: beet juice, carrot juice, rose petals,
- Brown hair: coffee, cinnamon
- Black hair: black walnut, black tea, sage, nettle
Here are some hair dye recipes suggested by advocates of natural hair dye:
- Torai ridged gourd. Boil torai in coconut oil until it turns black (about four hours). When it cools down, massage a small amount into your scalp and hair. After 45 minutes, wash it out of your hair. Repeat two to three times a week.
- Bhringraj. In a small pan over low heat, mix 1 teaspoon of bhringraj and 2 tablespoons of coconut oil. Rub the warm mixture into your hair and scalp. Wash it out after one hour. Repeat two to three times a week.
- Black pepper. Mix 1 tablespoon of freshly ground black pepper and 1 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice into ½ cup of plain yogurt. Massage the mixture into your hair, leaving it in place for 1 hour and then rinsing it out. Repeat three times per week.
- Henna. Mix enough henna powder into one cup of black tea or coffee to make a paste with the consistency of yogurt. Cover the bowl and let it sit. After six hours mix in 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and then apply the mixture to your hair. Rinse it off after 1 to 3 hours, depending on the depth of color you want.
Your follicles age along with you. As you get older, your hair follicles create less color. This causes the hair to lose melanin and color, making it appear gray or white.
There are a variety of options if you want to color your hair. Advocates of natural health recommend a variety of natural home treatments for gray hair.
These methods have not been clinically tested to establish how effective they are. Bare in mind, however, that many of these therapies can also cause adverse reactions. If you decide to try a home remedy to change your hair color, talk to your doctor first so they can provide insight based on your current health, the medications you’re taking, and other issues about the ways that a home remedy might affect you.
