--- title: 4 Reasons Why Your Hair Is Turning Gray description: Experts have debated the connection between stress and gray hair, but some research does show a link. canonical: https://time.com/4574073/gray-hair-growth-in-20s/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-11-18T15:47:10.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T01:51:59.178Z article:section: Health og:title: 4 Reasons Why Your Hair Is Turning Gray og:description: Experts have debated the connection between stress and gray hair, but some research does show a link. og:url: https://time.com/4574073/gray-hair-growth-in-20s/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb84f363bf5ff7322/6988aed1656a3f73debcde3c/gray-hair-causes.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Rear view of bare shouldered mature woman with long grey hair og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 4 Reasons Why Your Hair Is Turning Gray twitter:description: Experts have debated the connection between stress and gray hair, but some research does show a link. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb84f363bf5ff7322/6988aed1656a3f73debcde3c/gray-hair-causes.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 4 Reasons Why Your Hair Is Turning Gray by [Kristine Thomason / Health.com](https://time.com/author/health-com/) ## Kristine Thomason / Health.com Nov 18, 2016 3:47 PM UTC  TITLE TITLEGetty Images by [Kristine Thomason / Health.com](https://time.com/author/health-com/) ## Kristine Thomason / Health.com Nov 18, 2016 3:47 PM UTC Hate to break it to you, but someday, you’re going to start sprouting white hairs (that is, if you haven’t already). Most people spot their first silvery strands in their 30s, but when exactly you go gray boils down to your ethnicity—Caucasians tend to do so earlier than African Americans, for example—and your family history. If you’re already seeing white hairs in your 20s, that’s not _too_ unusual—especially if your mom or dad reached silver-fox status early, as well. However, if your locks start to lose pigment earlier than others in your family, there may be some environmental and lifestyle factors at play. We spoke with Marie Jhin, MD, a board certified dermatologist and director of Premier Dermatology in San Francisco, to explore the surprising reasons you could be going gray in your 20s. ### **You’re super stressed** Experts have debated the connection between [stress](http://www.health.com/stress) and gray hair, but some research does show a link. A 2013 New York University study published in _Nature Medicine_, for example, found [stress can cause the depletion of stem cells from the base of hair follicles](http://www.nature.com/articles/nm.3194.epdf?referrer%5Faccess%5Ftoken=f5itwGSx4tfduOAJ6brLKtRgN0jAjWel9jnR3ZoTv0PllzPg5WytBDYJRNOAVZQdntSUaaExaa8GG%5FD%5Fch131CAJKcBFet--QLk8oZ9cGATDXFmx79IDaw7NdBlPRXe0JJMNyH3F9STF8GaGvvW0ieCr5glOyDVgvT%5F49R%5F3SzkUpuQ03SumRsX95XPJhmCV&tracking%5Freferrer=www.abc.net.au) in mice. There isn’t tons of research to back up the theory that stress impacts hair, but there’s plenty of anecdotal evidence, says Dr. Jhin. Just look at these photos of [how presidents aged in office](http://content.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1872168,00.html) for some not-so-scientific proof. **_Health.com:_** [_How to Kick Stress in 20 Minutes or Less_](http://www.health.com/stress/beat-stress/?xid=time) ### **You have a medical condition** In rare cases, premature graying may be triggered by health issues like [thyroid](http://www.health.com/thyroid) disease or problems with the pituitary glands. Autoimmune diseases that attack the skin and hair, such as [alopecia](http://www.health.com/beauty/living-with-alopecia) or [vitiligo](http://www.health.com/stress/autoimmune-disease-vitiligo), can also cause grays. “Autoimmune means your own cells are attacking your body,” says Dr. Jihn. “So if your body is attacking your hair cells, you can go gray as a result.” ### **You’re vitamin deficient** Another possibility for your silvery strands is a [vitamin B12 deficiency](http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20924065,00.html), says Dr. Jhin. There’s a [number of factors](http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20924065,00.html) that put you at greater risk, like being a vegetarian or [vegan](http://www.health.com/nutrition/vegan-facts), taking [birth control](http://www.health.com/birth-control/health-benefits-birth-control) pills or having [GI issues](http://www.health.com/crohns-disease). But if your early grays are linked to B12, it’s most likely due to pernicious [anemia](http://www.health.com/anemia), a decrease in red blood cells caused when intestines can’t absorb enough vitamin B12. **_Health.com:_** [_19 Signs Your Thyroid Isn’t Working Right_](http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20723100,00.html/?xid=time) ### **You’re a smoker** “Smoking is of the worst things you can do for your skin and hair,” says Dr. Jihn. In fact, research has shown an association between cigarette [smoking](http://www.health.com/smoking) and the onset of [gray hair before age 30](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3673399/). “If you look at smokers, you can see the wrinkles in their skin,” she says. “You may not be able to see wrinkles on the scalp, but it’s still affecting all the follicles.” All that said, Dr. Jihn still emphasizes that all of these factors have much less of an impact on your hair color than your genes. “But if you notice you’re getting premature graying and it doesn’t run in your family,” says Dr. Jihn, “then you should see your doctor to check if your [thyroid](http://www.health.com/thyroid) is okay, your vitamin levels are fine, and that you don’t have [anemia](http://www.health.com/anemia).” _This_ [_article_](http://www.health.com/beauty/causes-gray-hair/?xid=time) _originally appeared on_ [_Health.com_](http://www.health.com) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4574073/gray-hair-growth-in-20s/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4574073/gray-hair-growth-in-20s/"},"headline":"4 Reasons Why Your Hair Is Turning Gray","datePublished":"2016-11-18T15:47:10.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T01:51:59.178Z","description":"Some of the causes of gray hair have nothing to do with your genes","url":"https://time.com/4574073/gray-hair-growth-in-20s/","keywords":["Aging"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb84f363bf5ff7322/6988aed1656a3f73debcde3c/gray-hair-causes.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Kristine Thomason / Health.com"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb84f363bf5ff7322/6988aed1656a3f73debcde3c/gray-hair-causes.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Rear view of bare shouldered mature woman with long grey hair","caption":"Rear view of bare shouldered mature woman with long grey hair","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/aging/","name":"Aging"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4574073/gray-hair-growth-in-20s/","name":"4 Reasons Why Your Hair Is Turning Gray"}}]}] ```