Grey Hair May Be A Biomarker For CVD (and Biological Age) In Men

[haidut]

Ray has written about the role of low copper, high serotonin, and generally low thyroid function in changing hair color from dark (or blonde) into white with advancing age. It just so happens, that these phenomena also affect heart health. I have long suspected that premature greying of hair on top of head is a sign of poorer health but could not find many studied which examined the connection.
This study found that such a link indeed exists, and in general the whiter the hair of the male is the higher his risk of having or developing CVD. So, as they say, grey hair is a possible biomarker of "biological age" and thus systemic health.

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Gray Hair Linked With Increased Risk Of Coronary Artery Disease in Men

"...They found that a high hair whitening score (grade 3 or more, predominately white hair) was associated with increased risk of CAD independent of chronological age and established cardiovascular risk factors.
Patients with CAD had a statistically significant higher hair whitening score and higher coronary artery calcification than those without CAD. In multivariate regression analysis, age, hair whitening score, hypertension and dyslipidaemia were independent predictors of the presence of atherosclerotic CAD. Only age was an independent predictor of hair whitening. “Atherosclerosis and hair graying occur through similar biological pathways and the incidence of both increases with age,” Dr. Samuel said. “Our findings suggest that, irrespective of chronological age, hair graying indicates biological age and could be a warning sign of increased cardiovascular risk.”

 

[CoolTweetPete]

Thanks for this @haidut

I have seen a study you posted in the past about grey hair being linked with an excess of tryptophan and Dr Peat has explained that tryptophan tends to accumulate in advanced age.

Do you think it would be possible to affect this phenomena at the level of the follicle using topicals, possibly cyproheptadine?

I have been toying with topical taurine on some grey chin hairs but it hasn't had an effect yet at least.

 

[haidut]

Thanks for this @haidut

I have seen a study you posted in the past about grey hair being linked with an excess of tryptophan and Dr Peat has explained that tryptophan tends to accumulate in advanced age.

Do you think it would be possible to affect this phenomena at the level of the follicle using topicals, possibly cyproheptadine?

I have been toying with topical taurine on some grey chin hairs but it hasn't had an effect yet at least.

Peat said topical copper solution can change color almost overnight back to way it was before but it can also cause moles. So, maybe a weaker solution would be better to try first even though I don't know what concentration would be optimal. Dopamine agonists taken orally have also been shown to restore hair color in some cases. Anything that inhibits tryptophan absorption from diet should also help, so aspirin, glycine, BCAA, etc should help a lot.

 

[Drareg]

Grey hair seems to have many pathways some more dominant than in others but all with greying hair,some will have low androgens,some will be ok androgen wise but more serotonin,lower dopamine etc,hydrogen peroxide is rumoured to be involved ,something systemic will help and I guess that's why Peat recommends thyroid.

I'm guessing the deiodinase enzymes are at play in individual hair follicles,it's also interesting to note how greying starts,in general it's the sides of the head,temples,muzzle area,I'm curious if this is because where fat is stored,the side of the head has a fat pad that needs removing before surgery,overtime as we age the fat pad will increase ever so slightly but also the quality of fat stored.
Dogs also get the muzzle effect similar to humans,why is that? Morphogenetic field?

Undereating protein has to be involved,if we need more protein as we age it wouldn't surprise me.

 

[dfspcc20]

Peat said topical copper solution can change color almost overnight back to way it was before but it can also cause moles.

This comment made me curious.
I'm in my mid-30s and have no gray hair and no signs of MPD. (I don't necessarily attribute this to my diet, and I definitely have other issues.)
I do seem to get a lot of (small) moles.
Is something with copper metabolism at play here?
My dad was the same way- full head of hair his entire life, barely any gray. His beard did get a bit gray in his sixties, though. Also had the tendency to get moles.
I always thought it was just a "feature" of having olive skin complexion.

 

[Regina]

Grey hair seems to have many pathways some more dominant than in others but all with greying hair,some will have low androgens,some will be ok androgen wise but more serotonin,lower dopamine etc,hydrogen peroxide is rumoured to be involved ,something systemic will help and I guess that's why Peat recommends thyroid.

I'm guessing the deiodinase enzymes are at play in individual hair follicles,it's also interesting to note how greying starts,in general it's the sides of the head,temples,muzzle area,I'm curious if this is because where fat is stored,the side of the head has a fat pad that needs removing before surgery,overtime as we age the fat pad will increase ever so slightly but also the quality of fat stored.
Dogs also get the muzzle effect similar to humans,why is that? Morphogenetic field?

Undereating protein has to be involved,if we need more protein as we age it wouldn't surprise me.

Whoa. That's a pretty cool observation about the dog muzzle comparison to human temple area.
My dog is probably around 11 (adopted from shelter). I feed him a pound of raw meat a day plus ice cream, carrots, coconut oil and table scraps. He used to have a greying muzzle a few yrs ago but that has reversed. hmmmm

 

[Drareg]

Whoa. That's a pretty cool observation about the dog muzzle comparison to human temple area.
My dog is probably around 11 (adopted from shelter). I feed him a pound of raw meat a day plus ice cream, carrots, coconut oil and table scraps. He used to have a greying muzzle a few yrs ago but that has reversed. hmmmm

The same area in human beards start to grey in the same locations as dogs muzzle and probably other animals also,haven't checked it yet.

 

[Optimus]

I will never be able to digest that science has progressed till it finds out some conclusive ways to reverse graying the right way. How hard can it be, we're already talking about CRISPR and colonizing Mars.

 

[Drareg]

I will never be able to digest that science has progressed till it finds out some conclusive ways to reverse graying the right way. How hard can it be, we're already talking about CRISPR and colonizing Mars.

Very true,but once the damage has started it's difficult to reverse in our short lifetimes however there are examples of Parkinson treatments that reversed grey to black again in some elderly male heads so the pathway is there at least.

 

[jyb]

The same area in human beards start to grey in the same locations as dogs muzzle and probably other animals also,haven't checked it yet.

Grey hair is also more likely on the sides of the head. There are definitely male grey hair patterns and the greying as a patch on the side is a common one. From my own observations I doubt all cases of grey hair are due to bad metabolism, I know some very healthy people who became all white/grey surprisingly early -- to the point where I wonder if that's a different greying pattern caused by something different than other patterns. Women and Asians I know seem to be much less affected (and that holds for balding too).

 

[Drareg]

Grey hair is also more likely on the sides of the head. There are definitely male grey hair patterns and the greying as a patch on the side is a common one. From my own observations I doubt all cases of grey hair are due to bad metabolism, I know some very healthy people who became all white/grey surprisingly early -- to the point where I wonder if that's a different greying pattern caused by something different than other patterns. Women and Asians I know seem to be much less affected (and that holds for balding too).

The side of the head has a fat pad and I was always curious about its involvement,I'm sure there are subtle increases in fat over time in the head. The muzzle area may also have fat. Doesn't explain the pubic area fat pad though,maybe pubic hair requires less energy as they are not as long as head hair.
It would be interesting to find if it correlates with lower fat.
Some will say hair gels on the side of the head but this doesn't explain the muzzle area.

I'm not sure about the theory of Caucasians grey first,Asians then black,it's bordering on impossible to get honest research/questionnaires on it,I know men in their late 30's who die their hair but won't admit it.
I also notice Japanese tend to be grey from my observations,could just be career choice.

It's an issue for Chinese leadership according to this article.
Fighting grey: Why do China's leaders dye their hair? - BBC News

The patterns and pathways are many it seems.

 

[Nokoni]

"irrespective of chronological age, hair graying indicates biological age"

Oh how I wish this were true in my case, but it seems my coronary arteries didn't read the study. Mid-60s and very little gray, so I look younger (though I lost the beard ages ago), but CAD's a constant struggle.

And I've always had a particular affection for old dogs, so easy to spot with the wizened snout. Puppies are glorious but old dogs have given so many long years of faithful service :)

 

[haidut]

"irrespective of chronological age, hair graying indicates biological age"

Oh how I wish this were true in my case, but it seems my coronary arteries didn't read the study. Mid-60s and very little gray, so I look younger (though I lost the beard ages ago), but CAD's a constant struggle.

And I've always had a particular affection for old dogs, so easy to spot with the wizened snout. Puppies are glorious but old dogs have given so many long years of faithful service :)

Having no grey hair does not imply no heart disease. The study says basically "grey hair => high biological age => possibly CVD/CAD". So, the only thing that can be concluded without doing more studies is "No CVD/CAD => little grey hair" - i.e it is known as the contrapositive equivalency in logic :)
Anyways, yes, I also wish there is a single definitive biomarker for lack or presence of heart disease. I think ear lobe creases come close but they are also not exclusive AFAIK.

 

[tankasnowgod]

I came across this study where mineral content of both gray and colored hair were tested for 8 different minerals. All were lower in gray hair, with manganese, copper, magnesium, sodium, and potassium all being significantly lower in gray hair- Concentrations of Potassium, Sodium, Magnesium, Calcium, Copper, Zinc, Manganese and Iron in Black and Gray Hairs in Taiwan

 

[Nokoni]

the contrapositive equivalency in logic

RPF -- Come for the health tips, stay for the logic lessons :) And yeah, have had the ear crease since forever.

mineral content of both gray and colored hair

The thing is, despite having little gray, for most of my life nutrition was poor, literally eating mostly bag food for considerable stretches. Where'd the minerals come from? Meanwhile my little brother's been gray for decades.

 

[tca300]

Peat said topical copper solution can change color almost overnight back to way it was before but it can also cause moles. So, maybe a weaker solution would be better to try first even though I don't know what concentration would be optimal. Dopamine agonists taken orally have also been shown to restore hair color in some cases. Anything that inhibits tryptophan absorption from diet should also help, so aspirin, glycine, BCAA, etc should help a lot.

Could you point me in the direction on info/studies regarding glycine lowering tryptophan absorption? Thank you!

 

[haidut]

Could you point me in the direction on info/studies regarding glycine lowering tryptophan absorption? Thank you!

If you search the forum for "glycine tryptophan" a lot of threads would come up. Using Google for a search on "glycine tryptophan absorption" would also give a lot of results. This has been discussed multiples times. I just don't have time to hunt for those threads right now.

 

[kayumochi]

Asians I know seem to be much less affected (and that holds for balding too).

I lived in Japan for 15 years and witnessed that Japanese men in Japan DO go bald and DO go grey at rates seemingly higher than those Americans of Japanese descent living in the USA ...

 

[tca300]

If you search the forum for "glycine tryptophan" a lot of threads would come up. Using Google for a search on "glycine tryptophan absorption" would also give a lot of results. This has been discussed multiples times. I just don't have time to hunt for those threads right now.

Not Trying to inconvenience you, or be lazy. I had looked through the forum and searched online beforehand, and no such information exists within my reach. Which is why I asked.
Just information regarding glycine correcting issues caused by tryptophan, but not blocking its absorption.
No need to respond again! Thanks for your initial response!

 

[TreasureVibe]

Why would taking copper rich food like liver beef not reverse gray hair though, like a topical copper solution?