Preventing Premature Greying of Hair

Greying hair, like wrinkled skin, is a manifestation of the
ageing process. Both cause much despair and a feeling of regret, for lost youth. When hair starts greying prematurely, it can cause a great deal of anxiety and hopelessness. It does present a problem of how to camouflage the grey hair and also check the process.

Centuries ago, Ovid wrote, "Did I tell you to leave off dyeing your hair? Now you have none to dye"! Even in those ancient times, men and women of Rome and other civilisations used to dye and colour their hair, as part of man's eternal quest for youth. They obviously used substances that caused irreparable damage, causing Ovid to make this remark.

To understand the greying process, one must have a basic idea of the structure of the hair. It is in the middle layer of the hair shaft, the cortex, that pigment, or colouring matter, forms. This gives the hair its colour. The more the pigment, the darker the colour. With age, or due to other reasons, the pigment may not form, causing the hair to be without colour. The white colourless strands mix with the dark hair and give the impression of grey hair. Naturally, when the white strands appear, the question of how to deal with them causes concern, not just from the aspect of concealment, but also to control the greying. This makes it important to know a .few facts about hair, so that hair damage is minimal.

First of all, the strands that have turned white cannot become dark again. The only way to change their colour is by dyeing.

As far as your daily hair-care routine is concerned, wash your hair with mild herbal shampoos. An amla shampoo would be best, as It would benefit dry hair and also restore the acid-alkaline balance of the
scalp. Amla is also known to check greying. A herbal hair rinse would
give your hair added protection. Have regular conditioning treatments with henna to protect the hair and improve its look.

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