Remember a few years ago when gray hair was actually cool? Zayn had gray hair. Rihanna had gray hair. The New York Times wrote Style Section pieces on those zany millennials going silver. Everyone was like a really hot version of the Granny emoji.
Though for most people who aren’t Rihanna or Zayn (how sad for them!) going gray is like a plague on one’s pretty young head. Thankfully, science is now on your side according to a post via Refinery29. Scientists at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center have recently discovered exactly how hair goes gray while studying tumors in mice:
While studying the formation of certain cancerous tumors in mice, researchers found that a protein called stem cell factor (or SCF) is essential for hair pigmentation — delete it, and hair turns white...If cells with functioning SCF are present, they move up from the base, interact with the cells responsible for pigmentation, and become pigmented hairs. Without it, the mice’s hair turned gray, then white with age.
Using this newfound information the team is hoping to develop a “topical compound” that can deliver the genes needed to correct gray hair. I admit it’s a fantastic discovery indeed, but also stand by the idea that going gray can be a very good look, especially if you’d like to lead a healing cult some day or move to the woods to become a professional witch. Holly Hunter in Top of The Lake could be your future.