Commonly known as Premature greying of hair. It is only considered premature if it occurs before the age of 20 years in Caucasians, 25 years in Asians and 30 years in Africans. This can affect an Individual’s confidence in facing social situations and self-esteem. As the greying of hair is a normal aging process, but young people being affected by it is what we are dealing with here. At Royal Hairnic we are fully aware of the psychological effects caused by this condition, and apart from treating the condition we provide the support needed to the Individual in overcoming social stigma.

CAUSES:

The following are the potential causes for premature greying of hair, one or many might be the causes in each case.

1. Premature greying could be due to the decreased capability of melanocyte to produce hair pigmentation.

2. May occur alone as a single dominant condition or in association with various premature aging syndromes.

3. Nutritional deficiencies like vitamin B12 deficiency, chronic protein loss, iron deficiency, copper deficiency.

4. The condition may be caused by various environmental factors and can be genetic too.

5. Smoking is a factor that leads to increased oxidative stress resulting in damage to melanocytes (melanin-producing cells) causing premature greying of hair.

6. Low serum ferritin, low serum calcium, and vitamin D3 levels have been related as one of the causes.

7. Some studies have suggested that the primary cause of hair graying may be associated with hair anagen prolongation in the hair cycle making the situation less favorable for melanocyte to survive in the hair follicle.

DIAGNOSIS:

Diagnosis for Canities is majorly a clinical diagnosis. The following are the options that are considered at Royal Hairnic to identify the exact cause.

1. Tests may be suggested to evaluate serum Vitamin B12 and thyroid levels in individuals with no family history of canities.

2. Classifying canities as mild, moderate and severe depending upon the percentage of hair involved in various areas of the scalp.

3. Trichologists at Royal Hairnic will assess every possible aspect that could be causing premature greying. 

TREATMENT:

Royal Hairnic has been focusing on providing long term and feasible treatment to individuals based upon the diagnosis concluded at our center. As there is no widely recognized treatment plan, the following have been prescribed based upon the individual case.

1. Nutritional supplements with combinations of vitamins and minerals may be prescribed to address the cause. 

2. If Vitamin B12 deficiency and hypothyroidism are believed to be the causes then it can be reversed with vitamin and hormone replacement.

3. Natural hair dyes can be prescribed as they are not damaging as Unnatural dyes and the advantage is that they are hypoallergenic and non-toxic.

4. Temporary dyes may be an option as they cannot penetrate the cuticle and easily washed off by shampoo. They can help in camouflage and protect grey hair from photodamage in the process.

5. Despite the condition affecting many, limited treatment options have been showing results and hence at Royal Hairnic, we are dedicated to providing a photographic record of the scalp at different time intervals to evaluate how the treatment has been progressing.

6. The data is collected as mentioned in the above point can be used to score the condition based upon the progress made. At Royal Hairnic have been able to analyze such data to drastically decrease the chances of greying to revert after the treatment.

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