Premature Grey Hair: Psychological similarities to balding and future treatments

[YAN1986]

Hi all, I've read a lot of topics on this forum and enjoy it very much.

Throwing this out there before anything else: I am not balding and will certainly understand people's displeasure with me posting about a topic that many of you will feel like is a nothing-problem compared to baldness. Obviously, I'm going to disagree.

I'm 28 years old and have been getting grey hairs for about a year. It started shortly after my 27th birthday after a prolonged period of stress. It is not very bad, YET, but still worrisome. This has gotten me extremely depressed, has negatively effected my dating life, and has produced some of the same psychological issues that balding would. It makes me feel robbed of my youth, cheated, and that I've just been dealt a shitty hand in life. Going grey this early in life just makes no sense to me. Going through this experience makes me sympathize with a lot of what you guys are going through.

My question is does anyone think a grey hair treatment might be developed in the near future, what it might look like, and if it would go hand in hand with a treatment for baldness. A lot of the treatments like Histogen and Replicel have me optimistic. They aim to treat baldness on a molecular level, basically replacing cells, and if they are successful I see no reason why the cells responsible for producing hair pigment (melanocyte stem cells) can't be replaced either. The financial incentive for such a treatment is obvious astronomical.

Anyway, would love to hear some of your thoughts. And please, save the "just get some hair dye" comments. My response to anyone that says that is that hair dye on a man looks ridiculous, is completely obvious, and is the equivalent of wearing a wig or getting a really bad hair transplant.

[Munkynutz]

Actually if you don't mind dropping a lot of money on hair dye and doing it every month or more regularly you can have very convincing work done. But I understand what you're saying.

I have heard viviscal has had some degree of success with reversing grey hair in individuals and have read reports of changes in diet impacting it in a positive way.

[cure786]

Follow the following link budy.....

http://xenicalwtloss.hypermart.net/pseudocatalase.html

The above link is for prescription & below link is to order the medication once u have ur prescription
http://www.medicalwellnesscenter.com,

[pkipling]

Hey man. I've got quite a few of those gray hairs myself at age 30. I started getting them in my early 20s. And when I say "quite a few", I guess I mean maybe 30-40 or so - which really isn't a lot, I guess - but I notice them and it seems like a lot when they're on your own head. However, I was dealing with a receding hairline for the past several years, so that trumped any stress I could've possibly had about the gray hairs.

There are definitely similarities between the two, however, and the one that's worse is probably the one that most negatively affects you as an individual. And it if bothers you, then it's a legitimate concern. But just like with balding, when you start going gray, the best thing to do is to eventually accept it and get a plan of attack. Stressing about it and obsessing about it only makes them both worse (the balding and the graying) and definitely doesn't make the situations improve. I learned this the hard way, and believe my constant stressing about my hair loss didn't do me any favors at all (with the balding or the graying). However, when you come to terms with it and say "Okay. This is what's happening. Now what are my options?", then you're back in the driver's seat and feeling less like life has you by the balls and running in circles.

It's good you're looking into a potential treatment for this to be developed. In the meantime, however, look at what options you have now and take control of the situation. And at the risk of seeming completely defiant in the face of your request to "save the hair dye comments", I will just say this: My current roommate (whom I've known for 5 years) dyes his hair. I had absolutely no idea that he had been dying his wavy, brown locks for years to cover up the gray until I had to empty out his bathroom sink when the exterminators came over. Haha. So a good dye job is possible!

I am a patient advocate for Dr. Parsa Mohebi in Los Angeles, CA. My opinions/comments are my own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Dr. Mohebi and his staff.

[fred970]

Just dye it. Problem solved. See? We don't have that 10 minutes fix with baldness.

[YAN1986]

Thank you for the responses!

@cure786: I was excited about the potential for pseudocatalase when first reading about it and I already tried it-- did not help. It seems that it is only effective in those that suffer grey hair from vitiligo. It doesn't do much for natural grey hair and there are no studies between the two. I've been in touch with people at the LEF forum, which has a long-running forum devoted to the topic, and they also have had no success with pseudocatalase.

@pkipling: Thanks for the kind words. Yet, just like anything else, I'll have to accept it for the time being. Honestly, in certain cases it can look kind of cool and my hair is short enough to not really notice. But it still really does suck and has done a number on my confidence, specifically in the realm of dating. I just can't approach women like I used to and it has gotten to be psychological.

I just really wish this was given some attention. At least with baldness, its a lot more common-- walk into any bar and you're bound to see way more people with receding hairlines than those going grey at a young age. And with baldness, there are several treatments that at least have the chance of working.

Regarding dying, yes, it may look okay with those with longer hair. Not someone with a crewcut though, where the dye will stain your scalp and roots would show right away.

I really hope that with regenerative medicine and stem cell research growing at a rapid pace, someone looks into this real problem. No one should go grey at a young age just as someone should not lose their hair.

[Morbo]

Thank you for the responses!

I just really wish this was given some attention. At least with baldness, its a lot more common-- walk into any bar and you're bound to see way more people with receding hairlines than those going grey at a young age. And with baldness, there are several treatments that at least have the chance of working.
.

So if grey hair is worse than baldness, what are you waiting for? Get the razorblade or trimmer and shave it off. Seriously don't kid yourself.
if you actually think there are more effective treatments out there to treat hairloss than there are to treat greying hairloss, you are very sorely mistaken.
I'm speaking out of experience btw. I used to get grey hair comments when I was 19. Never bothered me. Now I don't even have black nor grey hairs left.

[burtandernie]

Grey hair isnt a big deal. Be thankful you have the hair. Its always funny those hair dyes for guys with grey hair that are like NW 1 at 50 because you just laugh that most men at that age dont have hair left to dye

[YAN1986]

So if grey hair is worse than baldness, what are you waiting for? Get the razorblade or trimmer and shave it off. Seriously don't kid yourself.
if you actually think there are more effective treatments out there to treat hairloss than there are to treat greying hairloss, you are very sorely mistaken.
I'm speaking out of experience btw. I used to get grey hair comments when I was 19. Never bothered me. Now I don't even have black nor grey hairs left.

Its not what I think-- its a fact that there are infinitely more treatments for baldness than there are for grey hair. Its not even close. There is a total of one option for grey hair and its not even a treatment-- its a camouflage method called hair dye and it hasn't evolved in 100 years.

I'm not saying that baldness has one sure-fire option that will work, but there are a bunch of different options that may work for different people. Fin, Minox, Nizoral, hair transplants, wigs, etc. There are also a variety of different treatments in the pipeline that have been research and have a good chance of working (Replicel, Histogen, etc). Grey hair? Oh yeah, hair dye. Grey hair is a legitimate cosmetic issue (particularly the premature kind) which should be studied and not just ignored. Hell, I'd settle for something that could at least slow it down.

Regarding hair dye, yes it may look okay with certain hair styles but not with someone that has a very short hairstyle, like me. The roots show almost immediately and it stains your scalp.

@MunkeyNutz - what is viviscal and how does it work? Never heard of it as an option for grey hair.

[Morbo]

Its not what I think-- its a fact that there are infinitely more treatments for baldness than there are for grey hair. Its not even close. There is a total of one option for grey hair and its not even a treatment-- its a camouflage method called hair dye and it hasn't evolved in 100 years.

I'm not saying that baldness has one sure-fire option that will work, but there are a bunch of different options that may work for different people. Fin, Minox, Nizoral, hair transplants, wigs, etc. There are also a variety of different treatments in the pipeline that have been research and have a good chance of working (Replicel, Histogen, etc). Grey hair? Oh yeah, hair dye. Grey hair is a legitimate cosmetic issue (particularly the premature kind) which should be studied and not just ignored. Hell, I'd settle for something that could at least slow it down.

I'm sorry, but making a word like fact bold doesn't make it more true. It's still bs. You're absolutely dead wrong, it's not even funny.
There are not infinite more - let alone more effective - options for baldness than there are for grey hair. There are an infinite amount of hairloss treatment snake-oils on the market promising to regrow hair. But there are exactly 3 or 4 who scientifically have a chance of working. And with working I don't mean regrowing most hair - no no wouldn't that be great - but maintaining the little hair you have left (for a short period of time). Those treatments not only have a small chance of effectiveness, they also require daily maintenance/intake, are very pricey, and come with a high chance of side-effects.

Hair dye just does what it promises, there is no maybe, there are no side-effects and can be done on a weekly basis. Period.

hair transplants

Please read up before you write such things. They're not only very pricey they're not a cure or a real treatment for the average Joe.

wigs, etc

You know as well as I do that a wig is not an option. Otherwise you would've just shaved off your grey hairs and walked through life without a worry with a dark wig on your head.

There is a total of one option for grey hair and its not even a treatment-- its a camouflage method called hair dye and it hasn't evolved in 100 years.

Hair dyeing is a socially accepted technique which changes the color of your hair. A wig... is camouflage. You whine about 'camouflage' yet you mention a wig as a real option. Very strange indeed.

There are also a variety of different treatments in the pipeline that have been research and have a good chance of working (Replicel, Histogen, etc)

Here's the thing... they're not treatments because they're not here and they are not guaranteed to be here in a few years or ever. They're projects which have been in development for the past 5 years or more and have a chance (or not) to offer an alternative treatment. These potential treatments do not offer a a full blown cure. They're not for everyone. they offer the possibility of regrowing some hair for people in their early stages.

Grey hair is a legitimate cosmetic issue (particularly the premature kind) which should be studied and not just ignored.

Again, I got comments at school and from my sisters at 19 that I was getting grey. Getting grey hairs at 27-28 is not "premature grey hair" . Maybe you should like... grow a pair?

[YAN1986]

I'm sorry, but making a word like fact bold doesn't make it more true. It's still bs. You're absolutely dead wrong, it's not even funny.
There are not infinite more - let alone more effective - options for baldness than there are for grey hair. There are an infinite amount of hairloss treatment snake-oils on the market promising to regrow hair. But there are exactly 3 or 4 who scientifically have a chance of working.

What's funny is you trying to argue against cold, hard facts, and miserably fail at it. You pretty much just proved my point.

You just admitted that there are 3-4 treatments which have a chance of working against baldness....which is 3-4 MORE than anything similar for grey hair. Simple mathematics dude...use a calculator if you have to.

Grey hair: Hair dye (non-molecular, camouflage) and nothing else.
Baldness: 3-4 treatments that have a chance of working on a molecular level.

Arguing against these facts is like trying to argue that grass isn't green and that there are no fish in the sea. But I'm sure you'll try.

On top of that, there are hair transplants, which are a REAL option, despite you choosing to conveniently ignoring them. There are also wigs, which are a pretty bad option, but an option non-the-less.. about as bad as a bad dye job.

Hair dye just does what it promises, there is no maybe, there are no side-effects and can be done on a weekly basis. Period.

Umm, no, not period... as much as you'd like it to be. You conveniently ignore that hair dye also requires ridiculous maintenance, can be extremely obvious, especially in men, does not work on very short hair, and contains harmful ingredients that may cause cancer and even hair loss. And its a product that has not evolved in a 100 years.

But yeah, umm...hair dye.

Please read up before you write such things. They're not only very pricey they're not a cure or a real treatment for the average Joe.

There are plenty of testimonials of great hair transplants all over the internet that are indeed a cure for some people. Not all...but some. If you know of a permanent treatment for grey hair similar to a hair transplant for baldness, that will work for some but not all, feel free to post it and I'll give it a shot.

Here's the thing... they're not treatments because they're not here and they are not guaranteed to be here in a few years or ever. They're projects which have been in development for the past 5 years or more and have a chance (or not) to offer an alternative treatment. These potential treatments do not offer a a full blown cure. They're not for everyone. they offer the possibility of regrowing some hair for people in their early stages.

Agreed with everything you said! Now, show me some similar projects, with trials behind them, for grey hair that could be out in 5 years.

You can't and you won't because there are none which, once again, proves my point.

Again, I got comments at school and from my sisters at 19 that I was getting grey. Getting grey hairs at 27-28 is not "premature grey hair" . Maybe you should like... grow a pair?

Umm, what's your point? You're comfortable with getting greys prematurely and I'm not. There are plenty of people comfortable with balding and other's are not. Throwing out insults about it is pretty childish.

And going grey at 27-28 is indeed premature, as the average age for starting to go grey, in Caucasians, is mid 30's. Go look at a crowd of 27-28 year olds and see how many of them are going grey.

[Morbo]

What's funny is you trying to argue against cold, hard facts, and miserably fail at it. You pretty much just proved my point.

You just admitted that there are 3-4 treatments which have a chance of working against baldness....which is 3-4 MORE than anything similar for grey hair. Simple mathematics dude...use a calculator if you have to.
Grey hair: Hair dye (non-molecular, camouflage) and nothing else.
Baldness: 3-4 treatments that have a chance of working on a molecular level.
Arguing against these facts is like trying to argue that grass isn't green and that there are no fish in the sea. But I'm sure you'll try.
On top of that, there are hair transplants, which are a REAL option, despite you choosing to conveniently ignoring them. There are also wigs, which are a pretty bad option, but an option non-the-less.. about as bad as a bad dye job.

.

There are a dozen kind of dyes, there are 4 hairloss treatments. What you're failing to understand is that at the end of the day the amount simply does not matter when that 1 grey hair treatment is 10 times more effective, cheaper, lower in maintenance and without (or fewer) side-effects than all those hairloss products put together. This not an opinion. It is a fact. (see what I'm doing here)

On top of that, there are hair transplants, which are a REAL option, despite you choosing to conveniently ignoring them. There are also wigs, which are a pretty bad option, but an option non-the-less.. about as bad as a bad dye job.

I did not ignore them I even replied to your point assuming you would understand why.
Have you ever researched this site? Have you ever looked at the billion dollar Wayne Rooney transplant? A hair transplant is a very pricey deal, delivering mediocre or even poor results, which still requires lifelong 'the big 4' treatment for maintenance (you know the products which failed them at keeping their hair before), which highly depends on the donor (if you're a bad donor your hair falls out afterwards and you're left scarred for the rest of your life) and generally taken demands the patient to fill in the rest of his head with concealer. (you know a dye which is rubbed on the scalp like the one you're refusing to rub on your own head because according to you it's not an option^^)

There are also wigs, which are a pretty bad option, but an option non-the-less.. about as bad as a bad dye job.

I've already pointed out two times that a wig is as good a solution for a greying guy as it is for a balding guy, yet you're not wearing one either because you deem it as not an option. When replying to my post piece by piece, you've been very careful/specific in ignoring that part. Repeating myself is rather exhausting tbf.

Umm, no, not period... as much as you'd like it to be. You conveniently ignore that hair dye also requires ridiculous maintenance, can be extremely obvious, especially in men, does not work on very short hair, and contains harmful ingredients that may cause cancer and even hair loss. And its a product that has not evolved in a 100 years.

Again, have you read any topics on this forum? Hairloss treatment simply demands MORE maintenance than dying your hair once every 1 or 2 weeks. This is not an opinion this is a fact. Doesn't work on short hair? Can't you grow it out? Must be a luxury being picky about your hairstyle. I feel your pain. Really.

There are plenty of testimonials of great hair transplants all over the internet that are indeed a cure for some people. Not all...but some. If you know of a permanent treatment for grey hair similar to a hair transplant for baldness, that will work for some but not all, feel free to post it and I'll give it a shot.

Ehmm... there are permanent hairloss treatments?
You do realize neither a transplant nor the big 3-4 are permanent solutions for aggressive hairloss sufferers?

Agreed with everything you said! Now, show me some similar projects, with trials behind them, for grey hair that could be out in 5 years.

You can't and you won't because there are none which, once again, proves my point.

Maybe we should discuss life on Mars vs time travel. You do realize that as long as neither one of these products are even close to be on the market of even being successful absolutely none if this matters.

Umm, what's your point? You're comfortable with getting greys prematurely and I'm not. There are plenty of people comfortable with balding and other's are not. Throwing out insults about it is pretty childish.
And going grey at 27-28 is indeed premature, as the average age for starting to go grey, in Caucasians, is mid 30's. Go look at a crowd of 27-28 year olds and see how many of them are going grey.

Look, you're absolutely not getting it. That fact being bald is worse than being grey has absolutely nothing to do with "being comfortable with it" or "an opinion' and certainly not the grass being greener on the other side.
Being bald is an infinity worse than being grey. There are millions of bald guys who just wish and dream of being grey but they simply do not have the option to change that fact. There are thousands of grey men who don't want to have grey hair. Do you think they choose to go bald instead? I mean why not? They have the option. Which one do they prefer? Being grey or being bald? And than I'm not even talking about the female preference on the matter. What do you think they prefer? An average grey guy or an average bald guy. Seriously don't kid yourself. A grey guy has the choice of becoming bald, a bald guy does not have the choice of becoming grey. That is the only truth of it all.

And going grey at 27-28 is indeed premature, as the average age for starting to go grey, in Caucasians, is mid 30's. Go look at a crowd of 27-28 year olds and see how many of them are going grey

Please stop calling it premature greying. Getting grey hairs in your late 20's is not premature, it's early.


The thing that probably irks me the most is that you come here, on a forum with people who have spend about 2-3 hours a day maintaining their hair fruitlessly trying to save what's left, who have a spend a fortune of their money on pointless hairloss products and failed hair transplants. Just to feel sorry for yourself and tell them that your condition is worse because your (perfectly efficient) treatment just looks a bit too fake for your taste. Then you tell those guys they can always wear wigs and take hair transplants? Ehm what?

At the end of the day, I can only compare your situation with one of a girl complaining about saggy tits on a breast-amputee forum.

[Morbo]

I also like to add. Yan I can only hope for you to be so lucky, to wake up one year from now, finding out you're not only losing all your dark hair but also all your grey. Maybe then you'll get it through your skull.

[YAN1986]

There are a dozen kind of dyes, there are 4 hairloss treatments. What you're failing to understand is that at the end of the day the amount simply does not matter when that 1 grey hair treatment is 10 times more effective, cheaper, lower in maintenance and without (or fewer) side-effects than all those hairloss products put together. This not an opinion. It is a fact. (see what I'm doing here)

Do you know how to count? I mean, serious question. Because I have my doubts.

There could be a million types of hair dyes...its different brands of ONE PRODUCT, which is not a good option, for all the reasons I already listed.

My grey hair spread rather quickly so it would have been nice to have some of the options you have for balding. Having a pill to slow it down/stop it would be a godsend, let alone reverse it. I Instead the only option I have is a toxic dye that is obvious, wears off right away, and will damage my hair.

And just because dye is an accepted method, it doesn't change the fact that its a terrible option. People accept it because there's literally nothing else. If nobody bothered to research baldness, than wigs would be as acceptable today as hair dye is.

I did not ignore them I even replied to your point assuming you would understand why.
Have you ever researched this site? Have you ever looked at the billion dollar Wayne Rooney transplant? A hair transplant is a very pricey deal, delivering mediocre or even poor results, which still requires lifelong 'the big 4' treatment for maintenance (you know the products which failed them at keeping their hair before), which highly depends on the donor (if you're a bad donor your hair falls out afterwards and you're left scarred for the rest of your life) and generally taken demands the patient to fill in the rest of his head with concealer. (you know a dye which is rubbed on the scalp like the one you're refusing to rub on your own head because according to you it's not an option^^)

You're ignoring the testimonials of people with successful transplants, successful use of the big 4, etc. Do they work for everyone? No. Do they work for some? Absolutely.

The point is, you have OPTIONS. These options, IF THEY ARE TO WORK, which they do for some, are a lot better than hair dye.

[QUOTE]Again, have you read any topics on this forum? Hairloss treatment simply demands MORE maintenance than dying your hair once every 1 or 2 weeks. This is not an opinion this is a fact. QUOTE]

Really, you're going to argue that popping a pill (assuming it works, which it does for many) is harder than dying your hair?

Ehmm... there are permanent hairloss treatments?
You do realize neither a transplant nor the big 3-4 are permanent solutions for aggressive hairloss sufferers?

They're more permanent than covering up your hair with an unhealthy dye every week. If I had a pill that could stop my grey hair where its at now, or when it first started, I'd be on that shit like white on rice. Unfortunately, there is nothing like that-- only a fake cover up method that looks nothing like real hair color.

Maybe we should discuss life on Mars vs time travel. You do realize that as long as neither one of these products are even close to be on the market of even being successful absolutely none if this matters.

...neither one of these products!? There IS NO PRODUCT for grey hair. Not even in theory.

There are multiple products for baldness with real life human trials behind them. One is going into stage 3 trials next year, which is 1 step away from release. That is light years ahead of anything for grey hair!!! How does that not penetrate your thick skull?

Being bald is an infinity worse than being grey. There are millions of bald guys who just wish and dream of being grey but they simply do not have the option to change that fact. There are thousands of grey men who don't want to have grey hair. Do you think they choose to go bald instead? I mean why not? They have the option. Which one do they prefer? Being grey or being bald? And than I'm not even talking about the female preference on the matter. What do you think they prefer? An average grey guy or an average bald guy. Seriously don't kid yourself. A grey guy has the choice of becoming bald, a bald guy does not have the choice of becoming grey. That is the only truth of it all.

Again, your ability to tell the difference between opinion/fact is just as bad as your math skills.

It is an OPINION that balding is worse than having premature grey hair. There are also thousands of bald guys, with a good head shape, that shave their head, bulk up, and end up getting laid twice a day.

If I had the head shape for it, I'd shave my head in a second. I actually think a little grey looks cool on a "1 or so haircut. I don't have the head/face shape for it unfortunately.

With baldness, at least its common. Grey hair at a young age is nowhere close to common as balding.

Please stop calling it premature greying. Getting grey hairs in your late 20's is not premature, it's early.


The thing that probably irks me the most is that you come here, on a forum with people who have spend about 2-3 hours a day maintaining their hair fruitlessly trying to save what's left, who have a spend a fortune of their money on pointless hairloss products and failed hair transplants. Just to feel sorry for yourself and tell them that your condition is worse because your (perfectly efficient) treatment just looks a bit too fake for your taste. Then you tell those guys they can always wear wigs and take hair transplants? Ehm what?

At the end of the day, I can only compare your situation with one of a girl complaining about saggy tits on a breast-amputee forum.

"Premature" and "early" is the same thing, genius. Look it up in the dictionary. They're literally synonyms of each other.

The fact that you are irked is non of my concern.

My intentions were not to compare which one was worse, which I made clear in my first post. I simply pointed out that the psychological impacts are very similar, that its time for more options are made available and wanted to have a discussion as to whether or not some of these stem cell methods (you know, the ones that have had human trials for baldness, one of which is about to go into stage 3) might also be an option for grey hair.

I specifically asked people not to bring up hair dye, as that's not what the subject was about. Of course, you came on here and brought up exactly that, just to be an ass, I suppose.

[fred970]

TLDR. Just dye your hair you crybaby.