The color of hair is determined by the pigment produced in hair follicles. If the pigment cells are damaged and produce less pigment, gray hair will appear. In addition to genetics and aging, stress can also cause gray hair. Dr. Ya-Wen Yu, a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) practitioner at the Royal Jade TCM Clinic in Taiwan, outlined ways to reduce stress-induced gray hair on a program of The Epoch Times.
Dr. Yu explained that stress-induced premature graying often causes the hair to turn gray strand by strand, accompanied by symptoms such as hair loss, thinning, or dryness. A study published in the journal Nature found that under stress conditions, melanocyte stem cells rapidly proliferate, become depleted, and ultimately lead to permanent loss, resulting in gray hair.
