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The appearance of the first white hairs is around 35 years old and can vary by more or less 10 years. This is an average, the individual reality is quite different. The appearance of white or gray hair varies from one individual to another and depends on genetics, but also on internal or external factors. However, the appearance of 2 or 3 white hairs do not necessarily mean that you are going to have more in a row. We will see in the first part, why you have 1, 2 or 3 white hairs, then we will see in a second part, how to prevent and slow down the appearance of gray hair.

Why do I have 1 or 2 white hairs?

White or gray hair, everyone ends up having it, it's inevitable. This process is called canities. It occurs when melanocytes, the cells that are responsible for hair color, decrease or stop their production of melanin. In other words, your hair therefore continues to grow, but without pigmentation. Around age 35, it is normal for this process to appear, however when you are younger, and if you only have 1 or 2 white hairs these may not be the beginnings of canities.

This is because there may come a point in life when the melanocytes do not properly produce hair pigmentation. There is nothing serious or abnormal about this and this concern should go away over time if it only concerns two or three hairs and even more so if you are under 30 years old.

To confirm this, first analyze the appearance of white hair and ask yourself: are they numerous, sparse or is there only one hair that has turned gray or white? Indeed, one or two gray hairs are not indicative of a problem : it is very often a concern of localized melanin. Sometimes the hair is even depigmented on some parts, and on others it keeps its color. In the case of a single white hair, there is no need to worry. He just did not have time to load up with melanin Therefore, the next ones will grow back normal.

If you notice that more than 2 or 3 white hairs appear, it is possible that the canities process has started. We are now going to see the solutions available to you to avoid having gray hair prematurely.

How to avoid having gray hair?

We will unfortunately immediately cut you off from your hopes… To date, there is no medical treatment for physiological canities although research is underway to slow down or stop this process.

Cependant, le premature graying of hair, that is to say before age 35, and the stopping of certain melanocytes sometimes comes from factors over which we have control. If you conclude that your hair bleaching is not of genetic origin follow our recommendations to try to save time!

Solutions to prevent the appearance of 2 or 3 gray hairs prematurely

1 - Eat balanced to slow down the appearance of 1 or 2 gray hairs

Eat everything but stick to the slogan "avoid foods that are too fatty, too sweet, too salty". This is also valid for curbing the appearance of white hair! Eat a diet rich in vitamins, minerals and trace elements. If you have an imbalance in essential fatty acids, especially omega 3, you will promote the appearance of the first signs of aging, and therefore the appearance of 2 or 3 gray hairs.

Minerals such as copper, zinc and iron are said to have a positive effect on the hair. They would keep the hair follicles healthy and thus prevent the risk of having gray hair.

Copper is essential in the transmission of pigmentation to the hair. Indeed, melanin is produced by melanocytes thanks to the enzyme tyrosinase. And it is copper that catalyzes this enzymatic reaction. Therefore, a balanced diet and providing the right daily dose of copper allowsavoid the appearance of a few gray hairs prematurely. Be careful though, copper is toxic if you take too much! Take a blood test to see your copper level.

Finally, B vitamins are essential for preventing premature aging of the body and for providing energy to the body. Therefore, eat foods rich in B vitamins to avoid having 1 or 2 gray hairs. If you follow a vegetarian or vegan diet, consider taking food supplements for vitamin B12 in particular.

2 - Chronic stress also accelerates the aging of the organism and consequently the appearance of 2 or 3 gray hairs.

We know stress is hard to control, however try adopting stress relieving techniques or finding activities that relax you.

Avoid smoking which is responsible for the deterioration of the condition of the skin and hair. Indeed, as seen above, studies have shown the correlation between smoking and the development of gray or white hair before your thirties. Therefore, avoid exposing your child to cigarette smoke. OR If you are in a smoking environment, make sure you stay as far away from the smoke as possible. If you are a smoker, try to reduce your consumption as much as possible.

3 - Grandmother's remedies for the appearance of some gray hair

These remedies have never been scientifically proven. However, they take care of the health of your hair and have very interesting properties against the premature aging of the body. In addition, they help stimulate blood circulation in the hair follicles and therefore slow the appearance of white hair.

• Activate the blood circulation in the scalp and bulb with coconut, jojoba or almond oil rich in vitamin E which helps maintain healthy and resistant hair. Make gentle circular movements on your head, like at the hairdresser, to activate the blood circulation.

• Apply natural masks of antioxidant ingredients: sage or curry leaves, avocado, and onion have a reputation for their antioxidant properties and therefore fight against the premature aging of gray hair. Regarding their application, nothing could be simpler: for the leaves, boil them, filter the infusion and apply it to your hair when it is lukewarm. To crush the onion, squeeze the juice and mix it with oil. Apply for 30 minutes. Same process with the avocado, this time keeping the flesh.

How to hide your first white hair

When you have 2 or 3 white hairs, you can gently remove them with the tweezers. However, if 4, 5 white hairs appear then others following, the process of canities is surely started and then today there are no remedies to stop this natural phenomenon. And be careful, removing 2 or 3 gray hairs is acceptable, however if you have more that appears, do not pull it out! You risk damaging your scalp. Especially since they will repel whites again. On the other hand, rest assured knowing that it is a slow process, you will not end up suddenly with gray hair.

If you don't accept your gray hair, the camouflage solution is probably the best. Choose the coloring method according to the number of white hairs and your hair color.

• For blond hair : The appearance of white hair is hardly visible. We recommend sweeping for more naturalness. You will also avoid having to catch up on root color or camouflage every month.

• For dark hair : Coloring to camouflage gray hair will be your best option. You can opt for homemade hair colors, but be careful to follow the instructions and not to do it too often ... Even if your regrowth annoys you! The risk is to damage your hair and end up with dry, dull hair and sometimes even significant hair loss! It is better to wait at least 4 weeks, and the best is 2 months. Best of all favor natural coloring when you don't have a lot of gray hair to avoid damaging your hair.

• The natural method : If you don't have a lot of white hair, and dark or red hair, we recommend natural herbal and ammonia-free dyes such as henna. Ideal for not damaging your hair, your scalp and keeping a natural color.

Be aware that in no case, our advice replaces the advice of a professional, such as a doctor, a naturopath or a nutritionist. If you want to take a look at your state of health, do not hesitate to call your doctor.

The appearance of 1, 2 or 3 white hairs is therefore not a worrying phenomenon.. Very often, it is simply a temporary and localized dysfunction of the melanocytes and therefore a benign problem in the coloring of one of your hair. If more white hairs appear, it could strongly be that canities has started. Especially if you are over 30 years old. If this is the case, then there is nothing to do but choose between assuming or camouflaging your white hair!