Is stress causing grey hairs problem? What to do about it
Years of seeing the greying of presidents’ hair served as empirical proof that stress can, in fact, result in grey hairs.
Does it, though?
Recent research from Columbia University reveals a connection between stress and grey hairs, with the intriguing prospect that it may be reversible and that grey hair may turn back to its former colour while on vacation. In addition, a 2020 mouse study discovered that there may be a link between stress and grey hairs. According to research, mice’s hair begins to grey under extreme stress because an overactive sympathetic nervous system (often known as “fight or flight”) can induce a rapid depletion of melanocyte stem cells, which are responsible for producing colour. The fact that this study was conducted on mice is one of the study’s key flaws but experts generally agree that stress, along with genetics and ethnicity, may play a role in the formation of grey hair.
Does stress hasten the problem of grey hairs and ageing?
While there may not be a clear connection between worry and grey hairs, there is compelling evidence that stress can result in a number of physical and mental problems.
Professor of psychology and cognitive neuroscientist Patricia Simone works at Santa Clara University. Her research focuses on cognitive ageing and the factors that affect children’s and older people’s long-term memory.
“The real concern here is prolonged chronic stress,” says Simone, who alternates between the pronouns they/them and she/her. “That is less of an issue if we are able to respond and move on than if we ruminate and endure stress even after the circumstance has passed.
“This feedback loop is constructive. Health problems make stress management more difficult, and long-term stress is hazardous for our health, they add. In other words, stress worsens our health, which makes stress worse, and this vicious cycle is difficult to overcome.
According to Simone,
“People who report having experienced moderate to high levels of stress over a long period of time have been shown to have changes in various brain structures that are important for memory and cognition.”
Do stress-related grey hairs disappear?
She emphasises that people have more power than they may realise over stress and ageing. It’s interesting to notice that how stress is perceived is what matters. It concerns how we view a circumstance. Therefore, we are less likely to endure chronic stress if we believe we have the tools to address the problem.
Simone offers the following advice for easing stress:
Relaxation methods (such as yoga, deep breathing, and meditation)
Engage in social activity. We can retain our functioning capacity and manage stressful situations with just two hours of volunteer work each week.
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