My hair is turning gray!!!! Wondering if genetic or keto-influenced!

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Hi there! So I'm only 25... but it is possible that my hair starting to turn gray is genetic (my mom said she was in her late-20s when she started to go gray).. but I was reading that lack of certain nutrients and vitamins has been suggested to be a culprit for hair turning gray prematurely. I wonder if maybe I'm not getting enough vitamins because of doing low-carb?? Has this happened to anyone else? I usually take a Biotin vitamin (trying to make my hair grow for my wedding in April), but I'm not great about remembering every day. I do not currently take a multivitamin. Any insight would help! Thanks!!!

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  • KnitOrMiss
    KnitOrMiss Posts: 10,104 Member
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    @veronicaringel

    A quick google says that premature greying can be related to a B-12 deficiency. If you're getting plenty of meat (red meat in particular, chicken is a second), I very much doubt that you'd have B-12 deficiency. More googling says, "May restore gray hair if its cause was a deficiency in the PABA enzyme. Pantothenic acid (B5): B vitamin that supports hair health and color and prevents hair loss. Zinc and Copper: Deficiencies in these minerals can cause hair to prematurely gray." Again, those things are commonly found in red meat (beef, bison, and I think elk, etc.)... So unless you've been avoiding red meat for some reason, this is unlikely to be the issue... It's far more often to be present in a vegetarian or vegan diet.

    Stress can also contribute to accelerating greying (if you've got the genetics for it, but causes shedding more often), but most googling says it's genetics above all else...


    I joke that the grey/silver hairs are just natural highlights...

    Add a good quality B-Complex vitamin (like Jarrow's B-Right, and maybe adding Jarrow's B-12 lozenges, too) likely can't hurt. You might research zinc, but I personally don't think you'd want copper in a supplement, maybe in food sources. I seem to recall that Silica, Diatomaceous Earth, and Boron are also contributers to growing healthier hair, etc.

    OH, and you don't want to be at an extreme caloric deficit. That causes all kinds of hair chaos, too...



    BUT...Me personally, rather than fight it, I'd probably start experimenting with ENHANCING the grey/silver look...since unless you want all over dye, that's a fight you'll never win...


    That being said, I also believe it's unlikely to be related to a keto diet because, in general, most folks find that keto kind of presses the youthful rewind button, and generally improves your health by a decade plus, depending on your age, etc.
  • kpk54
    kpk54 Posts: 4,474 Member
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    I'm turning grey. Finally. I'm 64. :) My guess it is genes if your Mom started turning at 20. But who knows.
  • tcunbeliever
    tcunbeliever Posts: 8,219 Member
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    I started going gray at 20, long before low carb or keto or even any kind of food intake restriction...it is what it is.

    My daughter had a couple gray hairs at 12, so I just had her start eating a couple avocados every week and it went away. Avocado is the perfect nutrition powerhouse for just about any of the vitamin deficiencies that cause color loss.
  • cgcrutch
    cgcrutch Posts: 223 Member
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    I've always had a few greys at my crown(since preschool), and at age 25 they started spreading. I don't care much, it's genetic. I know I'll grey early and STILL have a full head of amazing hair at age 90!
  • cgcrutch
    cgcrutch Posts: 223 Member
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    Yours is most likely genetic too if other women in your family started greying early... at least it's not baldness like it is for men :-)
  • 62apples
    62apples Posts: 132 Member
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    gray hair is a lack of copper. shitaki and crimini mushrooms are low carb and full of copper, selenium, zinc, etc.
  • ladipoet
    ladipoet Posts: 4,180 Member
    edited February 2018
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    It's both genetics and nutrients. Prior to going Keto, I had a few noticeable patches of gray (I had been getting a few gray hairs starting in my early 30's). After going keto, and after transitioning to maintenance where I am now (macros % for protein jumped to 25% for me), 70-80% of my gray hair has receded. For me it was the B + amino acids that did the trick (shrug). I do still have a some gray hairs here and there but way less than I used to (I'll be 43 in a couple of weeks). I do take a B-Complex vitamin with Amino Acids (it's one pill 2 X / day) and also L-Tyrosine (I usually just take one of these in the evening).
  • squeeeyk
    squeeeyk Posts: 165 Member
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    I started getting in my 20s too. Just had my first child at 30 and now it's like I've got gray everywhere. Darn hormones and junk genetics lol.
  • Sunny_Bunny_
    Sunny_Bunny_ Posts: 7,140 Member
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    Keto or low carb should not be a nutrient deficient diet.
    It’s meat and vegetables
  • OKbreadsy
    OKbreadsy Posts: 2 Member
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    My gray-ing (and hair loss) has also slowed since starting keto in October.