Scientists have announced this week that within two years a shampoo or a hair cream will be available that could restore gray hair to their original natural color. A research team led by Dr. Bruno Bernard, head of the hair biology research team at beauty firm L'Oreal in Paris, pointed out that they may come up with a product that will be capable enough to wash the grey out of your hair.

According to Dr. Bernard, hair turns gray when melanocytes, cells that are producing pigments, die or no longer work in a proper way. In other words, as a person becomes older, the dark color starts fading away because melanocytes, which are found in every follicle from which hair grows, gradually start to switch off and die. However, Dr. Bernard also highlighted the fact that such cells often survive long after people go grey.

The scientists have revealed that an enzyme called TRP-2 is responsible for protecting the melanocytes that give the skin its color. They are now planning to conduct more studies hoping that they will be able to mimic the enzyme's action on hair follicles, re-awaken the cells, stimulate the hair to return to its original color, maintain the hair colour for a longer time, or even reverse the process.

The scientists believe that it may be possible to incorporate the TRP-2 enzyme in a shampoo, hair conditioner or hair cream and then activate melanocytes that no longer work. In a statement, they said that as long as a few melanocytes are still alive, the whitening process could be reversed by re-awakening or reactivating these cells. "The hair whitening process is slow and progressive, so we can prevent it," stated Dr. Bernard.

Angela Marshall, an image consultant and the owner of Appearance Management in Surrey said that the news are very exciting and that the new product could be revolutionary and save a lot of people, both male and female, a lot of money and worry. Marshall explained that so many people have their hair colored and then concerned about the color they have used. However, at the same time she was a little skeptical, noting that the treatment may not be beneficial for every person.

"It could be problematic for people with very dark hair as their eyebrows would probably still go gray and then their colorings would not match well. So treatment would probably be better for people with blonde hair where there would not be such a stark contrast," she said.

Experts say that such treatments will be mostly welcomed by individuals, who are suffering from premature graying of their hair. Among some of the causes of premature graying of hair are:

• Genetics: if one or both of parents have gray hair at a young age, chances are even that their offspring will have it as well.

• Some health conditions like thyroid disease, pernicious anemia and vitiligo also contribute to graying of hair.

• Deficiency in folic also is linked to gray hair.

• Stress.

• Non-healthy dietary habits.

Sometimes the strong chemicals that are present in some shampoos also lead to the graying of hair. In effect the above findings of a natural enzyme to prevent the inactivity of the hair pigment cells may come as a great relief to millions of people all across the world.

Tags: Beauty, Aging

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