Grey Hair Causes and Treatment | Red Light Therapy for Grey Hair

Gray hair is a normal part of aging. As we get older, we tend to develop strands, or even a whole head full of gray hair. Unfortunately, not everyone is “old” when they start to sprout up gray strands. It can be difficult to wrap your head around what causes gray hair, but even more difficult to treat it appropriately. Below I am going to dive into the causes and the treatments you can do to prevent, or slow down, the process of graying hair on the head. Read on to learn more!

Gray Hair Facts (causes and treatments)

Did you know that your hair actually does not turn the color gray? I bet this statement surprises a lot of you. According to science, as you age, the pigment cells in your hair follicles gradually die, and as a result, they produce less and less color. This color is known as melanin. Melanin is the same stuff that makes our skin’s color fair or dark, as well as determines if a person will burn or tan in the sun. The dark or light color of someone’s hair is dependent on how much melanin their hair has. As you get older, your hair is technically the same color as it was years ago, but the melanin production is much lower, causing a white or gray look to the hair strand. Hair strands will regrow a gray or white color on the scalp replacing old hairs that just went through the telogen phase of the hair growth cycle.

Have you ever heard that gray hair is more coarse than normal strands? Wrong! This statement is not true. Science has proven that the gray strands of hair on your head are actually more fragile and finer than other hairs. The gray hairs just feel this way to the touch because there is less oil produced in the hair follicle once hair starts growing in as a gray or white color.

Gray hair is thinner than hair with natural color because its cuticle is thinner. Because gray hair is thinner, it is not able to protect itself from water, ultraviolet rays from the sun, humidity, chemicals, or heat styling as well as natural colored hair can. Without this strong barrier, your hair loses a lot of its moisture, and will feel dry, fragile, and coarse.

One of the things we have to consider when we notice our hair becoming gray is that more than likely, we also have a family member who has gray hair. Unfortunately, genetics play a major role in why your hair may be beginning to gray. You can thank your mother, father, or even grandparents if you start to develop gray hair at a certain age.

What Causes Gray Hair?

Grey hair can develop for many reasons such as diseases, illnesses, stress, genetics, age and more.

Diseases:

Diseases such an autoimmune disease can be a major trigger point in developing gray hair. Alopecia is the most common autoimmune disease that can affect your hair. In many cases of alopecia and hair loss, the hair will actually regrow as a gray, silver, or white pigmented strand due to the lack of melanin.

Illnesses:

Illnesses such as vitiligo can cause gray hair. Vitiligo is a condition where cells that are in charge of producing pigment are destroyed. This causes the skin tissues and the hair surrounding these tissues to turn white.

Stress:

Stress can trigger a fairly common condition called Telegon Effuvium, which causes hair to shed almost three times faster than normal. This condition does not cause permanent balding, but if you are middle aged and start suffering from this, there is a high chance that the regrowth of your hair will be gray instead of your original color.

Genetics:

Genetics play a major role in individuals with gray hair. If you have parents or grandparents that developed gray hair at a certain age, chances are that you will too. Some may even develop it in their early twenties!

Age:

Age is a main culprit when it comes to graying hair. As mentioned above, when we age, our hair follicles are less able to produce the same melanin pigments as they once were. Although gray hair usually occurs in the midlife era of individuals, some people can start seeing gray hair as early as the age of twenty. Likewise, some people never see gray hair in their lifetime.

Can Stress Cause Gray Hair?

Because our lives are constantly changing, gray hair can result from general stress as well as anxiety. The factors of stress and anxiety can change our hormone production, hair follicle function, and our organ functions. Conditions that cause stress, such as pregnancy in women or a traumatic event, can play a factor in what happens to your hair.

When your body responds to stress, it often damages healthy cells. Responses to stress can cause damage to your DNA, which can later cause changes throughout your body. Stress can lead to a condition known as telogen effluvium, which is responsible for causing your hair to shed almost three times faster than normal. While this condition does not cause permanent balding, there is a high chance that the regrowth of your hair will be grey, rather than your original hair color.

Gray Hair Treatment Options

Here are the gray hair treatment 2023 options:

Laser Cap Therapy:

If you feel that your gray hair is starting to become thin, you can use laser therapy to strengthen and thicken the follicles. This therapy uses low level laser light therapy to penetrate the scalp and regenerate hair follicle cells to produce thicker, healthier hair. Kiierr’s laser hair growth cap might be the saving grace your gray hair needs to thrive once again!

Below are a couple recent testimonials from Kiierr laser cap customers stating it has helped them combat gray hair.

Hair Dye:

It is a common treatment to combat gray hair using hair dye. Men and women travel monthly to salons to get the proper hair coloring to cover up these gray hair strands on the head. When deciding to dye your hair, look for products that are designed to specifically cover gray hair. Permanent dye will better cover the roots of your hair and will dye them for a longer period of time. When dying your hair, it is important to keep in mind that excess dying can cause damage to your hair, which could potentially make it weaker and more brittle. Dying your hair can also get expensive, there are also other options such as root concealer spray, which is very affordable and easy to use!

Embrace it:

Although this can be difficult, gray hair is common amongst individuals around the world. Even animals develop gray hair as they age!

Don’t Pluck:

An important thing to remember when experiencing gray hair is not to pluck them out from your scalp. Plucking hair can damage and traumatize the hair follicle, and doing this repeatedly can lead to infection, scar formation, thinning of the hair, and even bald patches.

Style:

Try styling your hair differently. Male or female, try parting your hair a different way or on the opposite side to hide gray roots. Specifically, for females, slicked back buns are the most efficient way to hide those pesky gray roots.

Red Light Therapy Gray Hair Details

Red light therapy for gray hair can be used as an effective treatment method to strengthen and thicken the hair follicles. Red light therapy is also known as laser therapy, which can be found in devices known as laser caps. If your hair is starting to gray and feel thin and brittle, this treatment is a great option to turn to.

Red light therapy is emitted through laser diodes in laser caps to penetrate the scalp tissue and stimulate new and healthy growth in the hair follicles. Laser diodes are optoelectronic devices that convert electrical energy into light energy to produce a high-intensity coherent light. In short, they are much more productive and efficient than a regular laser would be. This therapy can also help reduce inflammation in the scalp, which provides a healthier base for the hair follicles to grow and prosper.

Laser caps are FDA-cleared and a hands-free, non-invasive hair growth treatment method. Do not wait until your hair starts to thin out even more, begin your hair growth journey today to get those strands healthy and strong!

Conclusion: Red Light Therapy Can Help Gray Hair

For most people, gray hair is inevitable. You are bound to get gray hair here and there throughout your stay here on this Earth. You should now have a better understanding of the causes of gray hair, as well as the treatment options that are available. Use this information as a guideline when trying to figure out what is causing your gray hair. You will then be able to further figure out what you need to do to treat it.

Do you have gray hair? If so, have you seen success in any of the treatments listed above?

Grey Hair Causes and Treatment FAQs