Photo Credit: Shutterstock

Our hair can often feel like a unique representation of us, whether you’ve got spontaneous, and free-flowing curls that frame your goddess-like face and express your joie de vivre, or style your tresses in a straight, sleek, and refined look to communicate your classic elegance, or anything in between, caring for your luscious locks is an age-old must. Yet as we age, our hair’s physiology endures various changes; no matter what head of hair you were born with, most individuals will experience some loss of pigmentation as well as a level of hair follicle shrinkage thus leading to thinner strands and lighter, greying hair. With age, many of us focus on maintaining healthy and youthful skin whilst letting our follicular fears, and fair hair-care warnings fly over our heads. Fortunately, there are simple lifestyle choices to be conscious of and regimented routines that can help prevent premature greying, preserve your youthful appearance for decades, and throughout all ages. The following tips and tricks target healthy hair and aim to retain pigmentation so that age can truly be just a number.

1. Incorporating Vitamins And Minerals Into Your Diet

Many of our health and wellness issues, hair-care based and not, start within our gut. When we are on the run and prioritizing productivity, as many of us are, it is easy to neglect proper nutrition and vitamin intake, yet this abandonment of self-care and ideal diet yields lasting negative effects, and can often lead to an earlier onset of signs of aging, notably greying and thinning hair and changes in the nails. Various vitamins and minerals protect hair pigmentation and serve to retain your hair’s vibrant and youthful bounce. Vitamins like Vitamin A and C have uses that benefit scalp and hair health in conjunction with many other parts of the body, Vitamin A is known to promote the production of sebum from the sebaceous glands under the skin to moisturize and protect the scalp while Vitamin C serves as an antioxidant which protects cells from damage caused by oxidation in the air. Complex B vitamins are those that are most notably accredited with hair color restoration following an illness, or aging or deficiency-based color loss, and have properties that prevent premature hair discoloration as well. Vitamin B-6 and B-12 are imperative to implement into your diet so that you do not suffer deficiency ultimately leading to greying and loss of pigmentation. These vitamins can be found at most health food stores and pharmacies in the form of Para-Amino benzoic Acid (PABA) and Pantothenic Acid. Minerals like iron, zinc, magnesium, selenium, and copper play an essential role in hair health and growth. Finally, Inositol, Biotin, and  Niacin, which naturally occur in the human body, can be taken to encourage hair growth, scalp circulation, and overall health to postpone greying. 

Photo Credit: Shutterstock

2. Protecting Your Hair From The Sun

Part of feeling sprightly and remaining young at heart is enjoying the simple pleasures that we once did. Unfortunately, long beach days and hours spent in the sun, though they fill our hearts and remind us of the freedom of our childhood and teenage years, can damage our hair with UV rays ultimately leading to premature greying and breakage. But we mustn’t compromise our love of the outdoors in pursuit of hair that remains radiant and colored. There are simple solutions that will protect your locks while you relish those hours under the warm sun. Spraying a leave-in conditioner, or products like it, into your hair and putting it back into a braid is one effective way to protect your strands. Since your hair will be hydrated and woven away behind you, UV damage will be much less likely to occur and permeate into your hair. On the same theme, wearing a hat or scarf to cover your hair from the sun’s harsh rays will absolutely leave your hair strong and nourished, ultimately preventing brittle and breaking greys. With a hat shading both your hair and face, your supple complexion will thank you too.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock

3. Re-evaluate Your Hair Habits

Various hair habits have been normalized in mainstream society, yet can cause severe damage and premature greying of the hair. Bleaching, frequent ironing and curling with heat products, washing the hair too often, using harsh soaps and shampoos, and using a brush rather than a wide-tooth comb with wet hair can all have serious and lasting impacts on overall hair appearance and health. Sometimes these methods are the only way to achieve the desired look, but it is encouraged to limit these processes and products, and when they are performed and/or used, we suggest adequate prep and protection measures as well as low-heat as a general rule of thumb.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock

4. Natural Herb And Henna Hair Dyes

For those with virgin hair who have run out of other options to combat pesky greys, but fear the damage that repeated dying can do, natural dyes can work as a legitimate option. Though dyes, for various hair colors, can be created using herbs and common ingredients, for example, coffee or cinnamon for brown hair, beet or carrot juice for red, or chamomile flower tea for blonde, henna dyes are popularly utilized and found to be quite effective. Of course, with henna dyes, or aforementioned herb-based dyes, repeated dying or leaving the homemade mixture in for a prolonged period may be necessary to achieve desired results. Henna dyes can be formulated by mixing the henna powder into black tea or coffee until a spread with a yogurt-type of consistency is obtained. This mixture should then sit for about six hours before being mixed with a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and applied. The length of time in which the mixture sits on the hair will produce results of differing intensity.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock

5. Traditional Dyes And Root Coverage Powders And Sprays

When all else fails, or in conjunction with some of these other highly effective methods, traditional hair dyes and/or root coverage sprays and powders will definitely conceal new and existing grey hairs. It is important to remember that traditional dying processes can damage your hair which can ultimately lead to more greying, so it is urged that you, if possible, dye your hair more sparingly and do your research so that you’re confident in your hair stylist’s credibility, protection measures, and techniques. Root coverage powders and sprays tend to do a great job of hiding or minimizing the appearance of stray greys and can be wonderful in terms of hair maintenance between dying appointments.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock

Though there may not be a way to turn back the clock and erase all signs of aging, you should be the one to tell the stories of your years, not your hair. Though grey hair has become increasingly accepted and even trendy throughout the years, many of us still search for the solution to those pesky shining strands. If you don’t want to rock the salt and pepper look, the above-mentioned methods work effectively to prevent greys and restore your original color so that you’ll always remain young at heart.