As for premature graying, we know that stress can do a number on the body: When it comes to hair, the theory is that long-term psychological stress can increase levels of oxidative stress1, which can then contribute to grays. Research on mice has also found that stress starts a chemical process that depletes the stores of pigment-producing cells, thus resulting in a faded hue. Each shift that happens inside the strand offers a little message: “Just like tree rings hold information about past decades, and rocks hold information about past centuries, hairs hold information about past months and years,” the report continues. That’s why the researchers wanted to measure these hair pigmentation patterns in tandem with times of stress and see if any of the changes matched up. Participants were asked to identify the most and least stressful events over the last 12 months, mark them on a map, and connect the dots to create a visual timeline of ups and downs. Then they measured each hair to match the specific weeks or months along the stress profile. It turns out, stressful moments (like marital conflicts, according to one participant) were associated with loss of hair pigment, whereas during moments of bliss, the hair regained its pigment. “There was one individual who went on vacation, and five hairs on that person’s head reverted back to dark during the vacation, synchronized in time,” says senior author Martin Picard, Ph.D., in a news release. It’s certainly something to keep in mind in terms of delaying premature graying. “But we don’t think that reducing stress in a 70-year-old who’s been gray for years will darken their hair or increasing stress in a 10-year-old will be enough to tip their hair over the gray threshold,” says Picard. But for some on the cusp, stress may be the final straw for those strands to topple over the edge.
