Vitamin Deficiencies That Cause Gray Hair

Rather than trying to avoid the gray hairs by using color from a bottle, look to your diet. Those who are deficient in some vitamins can find their hair turning gray sooner than they had ever anticipated or wanted. These vitamins are found in foods you should already be eating, so start stocking your refrigerator and pantry.

The reality is that there are no proven vitamins or supplements to prevent graying. But certain vitamins may temporarily delay the process, and the lack of some vitamins may lead to earlier graying.

1. Folic Acid
If you have a folic acid deficiency, you might get gray hair. Folic acid, also called vitamin B9, is one of the B vitamins. It helps the body use proteins, produce DNA and form red blood cells. Folic acid is manufactured. You can get folate, the naturally occurring substance, by eating beans, legumes, citrus fruits, whole grains, green vegetables, chicken, pork, liver and shellfish. If you have a deficiency, you can take a folic acid supplement. If you take too much folic acid, your body typically removes it through the urine.

2. Pantothenic Acid
People take pantothenic acid, also called vitamin B5, for gray hair. You can get this vitamin though vegetables, meat, grains, eggs, legumes and milk. You can also take pantothenic acid in a vitamin B complex that includes vitamin B5. Although fighting gray hair is on the list of maladies pantothenic acid can help, there is insufficient evidence as to its effectiveness for preventing gray hair, according to MedlinePlus.

3. Selenium
People use selenium for gray hair. You can take selenium as a supplement, or you can get it from food. The amount of selenium in food can depend on the soil from which the food is grown. For example, the Pacific Northwest and the Eastern Coastal Plain have low selenium levels, so people who live in those areas may not be getting as much selenium as people who live in the Rocky Mountain states, where the selenium levels are higher. Selenium is in chicken, wheat, fish, liver and crab. Although preventing gray hair is on the list of selenium benefits, there is insufficient evidence to indicate that selenium helps prevent gray hair, according to MedlinePlus. In addition, too much selenium intake, more than 400 micrograms, can be harmful, causing vomiting, nausea, energy loss and irritability. The effects of too much selenium are similar to the effects of arsenic poisoning.

4. Vitamin B6

As one of the B-complex of vitamins, vitamin B6, which is found in proteins such as liver, egg yolk, organ meats, vegetables and in whole grain cereals, can help keep your hair from graying. If you don't eat sufficient amounts of the foods that are rich in vitamin B6, your hair will lose its natural color. This vitamin assists a cell inside the hair follicle to produce melanin, which gives your hair its color, according to the World of Hair website.

If you choose, you can also increase your intake of vitamin B6 by taking 1.6 mg daily. Make sure to get sufficient quantities of this vitamin from natural sources: Look for cereals that contain high amounts of whole grains, eat five servings daily of vegetables rich in B6 and add brewer's yeast--also high in B6--to your food. The vegetables rich in B6 include spinach, avocado, asparagus, potatoes, peas, cauliflower, red bell pepper, broccoli and carrots

About Graying Hair

You have color in your hair because of melanin. As you age, your hair follicles produce less melanin, which results in gray and eventually white hair. Your genes typically determine how young you are when you begin to gray. For example, Caucasians tend to gray earlier than Asians, according to MedlinePlus. Sometimes, a vitamin deficiency causes gray hair, which is the theory behind taking certain vitamins to help prevent or delay the graying process.

 Source: www.livestrong.com  and  www.voices.yahoo.com