What Causes Gray Hair in Men?
The same thing that causes gray hair in women causes gray hair in men: lack of pigmentation. Pigmentation is what gives our hair its color--whether the color is black, brown red or blond. Without pigmentation, there is no color to the hair, and that is what creates gray or white hair.
Melanin
All hair starts out white, and then melanin, which are cells in hair follicles, kicks in and creates pigment, or color, in our hair. The more pigment a person has, the darker his hair will be. If you are fair haired, you don't have large amounts of pigment (or melanin).
Transparent Hair
As we age, we stop producing melanin and hair become colorless. Although the hair appears to be gray or white (particularly against our darker hair), it really is no color at all.
Genetics
When you will begin to lose your hair pigmentation, or color, depends primarily on genetics. If one or both of your parents turned gray early on, then you probably will, too.
Other Causes
If you have a thyroid imbalance or are deficient in vitamin B12, this can cause your hair to turn gray.
Smoking
If you smoke, your hair is four times more likely than that of a non-smoker to turn gray earlier.
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