Why did our hair turn grey at a young age?

It’s 10.30am and as Olive Burrows walks into the office, her neatly arranged blend of black and grey hair that radiates her skin tone is visible from a distance.

The 36-year-old senior anchor at NTV tells Healthy Nation that she loves her hair that way and explains that it is a sign of identity and heritage. She has never imagined dyeing it or changing it in any way. 

“My mother and grandmother grew up with grey hair. I am proud of my hair. This is what identifies me. This is in my DNA,”  says the breakfast show host.

She encourages young people to be comfortable in their own skin.

But unlike Olive, Ruth Mbugua (36), a hair dresser in Kiambu County, thinks otherwise. 

Last week, she says, she dyed her hair black and has lost count of the number of times she keeps doing so. 

“I started this business five years ago and lately I have noticed that there is now more than ever an influx of young people in their twenties and thirties who come here wanting to get rid of their visible grey hair, they say it really bothers them,” she discloses. 

Ruth says she has increasingly resorted to using hair dyes and other chemicals for the purpose of satisfying her clients that expect to get back their black hair. 

“I don’t like grey hair. I have also been in a constant battle with it for the last 15 years and whenever it shows up, I dye it black while keeping in mind that after a few weeks I will be doing the same thing all over again,” she explains.

She started having grey hair when she was in her early twenties. Like her mother, whose entire head turned grey at a young age, she too started having grey hair aged only 16.

She confesses that she has in the past tried to keep her grey hair but it makes her so uncomfortable.  “I get judged for it. Whenever I leave it like that, many people bother me wanting to know why I have so much grey hair and think I am old.”

Ruth is of the view that many young people are increasingly getting grey hair because of using too many chemicals and hair products. 

“There was a time when many young women used to ‘palm’ their hair so much so most probably this has affected the texture of their hair apart from it maybe being a genetic issue.”

Most of the women who come to her salon want to get back their black hair. “They just don’t like grey hair and want to still ‘look young’, no one cares which type of chemicals I am using on them, they are only conscious about how long their hair will remain black and the cost.” 

The costs in her establishment range from Sh50 to Sh300.

Ruth, however, is not alone.

“My hair started to go grey in a big way as I noticed I was getting roles at the workplace that were more stressing to my health. I noticed that for the last five years my hair continued turning grey at an alarming rate.  I am in my 40’s and would love to get my jet-black hair back and I keep wondering if it is possible to do so without going the route of colouring it or using any chemicals,” Mercy Nyongesa*, a communications consultant in Nairobi, tells Healthy Nation while seeking to know about the disadvantages of using dyes. 

Patrick Nduati (24) , a boda boda rider in Ruaka, says grey hair has immensely dented his self-esteem.

“I started having grey hair while in high school and this earned me a nick-name ‘mzae’. My classmates would then pick on me and refer to me as the old man of the class and interestingly out here most people I engage or socialise with first take note of my grey hair and still make jokes about it, you feel emotionally abused,” he opens up while revealing that he doesn’t care anymore. 

“I tried using dye but the fact that I have to keep going back after a few weeks and it costs money I am not ready to part with is an extreme sport I would not wish to engage in during these unprecedented economic times when I have many mouths to feed,” he says. 

Not everyone is, however, upset about grey hair. 

Like Olive, Gerald Ngigi, a trader based in Gikomba who is soon turning 36, says he is okay having grey hair and does not see the need to dye it. 

“The last thing on my mind is the greying of my hair as I have other more important things to accomplish with my life ,” he says. 

According to the National Library of Medicine, premature greying of hair (PGH) is defined as greying of hair before the age of 20 years in Caucasians and before 30 years in Africans. 

“It can severely affect the self-esteem of an individual. The exact cause remains unknown although it has been associated with premature aging disorders, atopy, and autoimmune diseases.”

Experts at the National Library of Medicine highlight that patients who present with PGH should be assessed for syndromes and metabolism diseases while adding that hair dyes remain the main modality of the treatment for cosmetic concerns after nutritional supplementation.

They observe that greying of hair, also called canities or achromotrichia, occurs with normal aging. 

However, the age at which it occurs varies in different races. 

“Hair pigmentation is one of the most unique features in humans ranging from black, brown and blonde to red. The colour of human hair is due to pigment melanin produced by melanocytes, which are neural crest derivatives,” the experts explain while pointing out that human hair follicles contain two types of melanin namely eumelanin and pheomelanin.

“The diversity of hair colour arises mostly from the quantity and ratio of black-brown eumelanin and reddish-brown pheomelanin. It has been hypothesised that the pH and cysteine level of melanosomes influences the phenotype of hair.”

While noting that genetic and environmental elements influence the hair follicle stem cells and melanocytes (a cell in the skin and eyes that produces and contains the pigment called melanin), telomere (a region of repetitive DNA sequences at the end of a chromosome) shortening, decrease in cell numbers and certain transcription factors have all been implicated in this process of aging. 

“In turn, these molecular alterations lead to structural modifications of the hair fiber, decrease melanin production, and lengthen the telogen (a scalp disorder characterised by excessive shedding of hair) phase of the hair cycle.

While agreeing with the findings and highlighting that genetic factors play a predominant role in the graying of hair, Dr Pranav Pancholi, a dermatosurgeon at Avane Clinic in Gigiri, Nairobi,  disclosed that many people aged 25- 40 who are deeply concerned about grey hair and are in search for a permanent solution to their predicament have been visiting his clinic.  

“It should be clear that hair transplantation in this situation is not a solution and cannot work, this is why at Avane Clinic we do stem cell treatment and administer an array of Korean hair products that end premature greying of hair,” he says.

According to the expert, a hair transplant is a surgical procedure that transplants hair from one area to another.

“This procedure is primarily used for people whose hair is thinning or going bald.”

He explains why they do stem cell treatment. “If all the stem cells are depleted, no more pigment-producing cells can be produced anymore, the hair turns grey.” 

The National Library of Medicine also lists other factors that studies have shown to contribute to the greying of hair. 

“Reversible hypopigmentation of the hair can be seen in nutritional deficiencies, protein-energy malnutrition and diseases of chronic loss of protein. Copper and iron deficiency also can cause greying of hair,” it notes after a peer-reviewed study reported significantly lower levels of copper in patients with PGH when compared to the control group.

“The study, however, did not report lower levels of zinc or iron in the affected population. A newer study of the young Indian population reported lesser serum levels of ferritin, calcium and Vitamin D3 levels in subjects prone to PGH.” 

The experts also explain that smoking has been studied and found to be an etiological agent in early-onset achromotrichia (absence of pigment in the hair) after findings revealed that there was a significant correlation between smoking and premature hair greying. 

“The possible explanation to this is the pro-oxidant effect of smoking on the body leading to increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) damage to hair follicle melanocytes.” 

The skin is the largest organ in mammals — consisting of three layers; epidermis, dermis and hypodermis  with associated appendages, including hair follicles (HFs), sebaceous, and sweat glands with the role of ROS being regulation of HF cycle. 

They also observed that progeroid syndrome (an extremely rare, progressive genetic disorder that causes children to age rapidly, starting in their first two years of life) is associated with defective repair of DNA, which makes the DNA more susceptible to oxidative stress. 

Vitiligo is another condition with early greying of hair. 

“Melanocytes in patients with vitiligo are more sensitive to oxidative stress.”

Researchers further point out that certain chemotherapeutic drugs and antimalarials can cause PGH. 

“These drugs are thought to inhibit the receptor tyrosine kinase c-kit found in melanocytes reducing melanogenesis.  Chloroquine preferentially reduces pheomelanin production by unknown mechanism,” the experts note.

The National Library of Medicine notes that in men, greying first occurs in the temples and sideburns. 

“It spreads to the vertex and the rest of the scalp . In women, greying is first noticed at the boundaries of the scalp. The rate of progression of greying is determined by various factors though mainly genetic.” 

Researchers go ahead to explain that recent advances, which include addition of antioxidants in shampoos such as Vitamins C and E, have questionable efficacy levels due to short contact period. 

“Green tea extract, selenium, copper, phytoestrogens and melatonin are being studied as attractive topical anti-aging compounds. Recombinant human growth hormone has resulted in improved hair thickness, growth, and even darkening of hair,” the experts note.

A fortnight ago, scientists in the US   found that women who have used hair straightening chemicals or relaxers are at higher risk of developing uterine cancer.

This is after a new peer reviewed study done by  the National Institutes of Health(NIH) found an increased risk of hormone-related cancer in women who have used the chemicals in their hair.

“We estimated that 1.64 per cent of women who never used hair straighteners would go on to develop uterine cancer by the age of 70; but for frequent users, that risk goes up to 4.05 per cent,” explained lead author Alexandra White,  who is the head of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Environment and Cancer Epidemiology group. They collected medical records and lifestyle surveys from tens of thousands of women aged 35 to 74, all of whom are sisters to women with breast cancer but did not have cancer themselves, in an effort to identify risk factors for breast cancer and other diseases.

They found that over the course of 11 years, 378 cases of uterine cancer were diagnosed among the study’s 33,497 participants and observed that women who had ever reported using straightening products in the last year were slightly likelier to develop cancer than those who’d never used them while women who’d used the products more than four times in the past year were even more at risk — though the experts cautioned that uterine cancer is still relatively rare.

How to prevent greying of hair

Researchers are learning that it might be possible to prevent or reverse grey hair via healthy lifestyle habits 
Here is what to do to prevent greying of hair. 
1. Avoid stress –  New research suggests that depigmentation or greying of hair is triggered by stress—and likely inflammation from stress. 
2. Avoid smoking – Smoking is a key factor in the oxidative stress equation and is correlated with premature greying in all age groups. 
3. Watch what you eat- Eating a diet that can help tamp down inflammation may help protect the cells responsible for your hair’s pigment. 
4. Take enough vitamins and minerals - Ensure you have an adequate level of Vitamin D3 and Vitamin B12 since deficiencies in either of these may accelerate greying.
5. Keep off hair chemicals and pollutants- Repetitive use of heat, chemical treatments and exposure to toxins and pollutants  can damage the hair and the pigment cells.
6. Go for check-ups-  A number of  autoimmune and thyroid-related disorders can be related to premature greying.
Source : The International Journal of Trichology 

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