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Herbs have been used in the traditional folk medicine of many nations for thousands of years to treat premature aging conditions such as premature graying hair. Admittedly, traditional medicines have not always been effective in treating white hair and to this day no herbal or medicinal treatment for age-related and genetically-determined gray hair conditions exists. Nonetheless, herbal remedies have experienced a great revival in popularity recently and now account for more than 50% of all hair care products sold. Their attractiveness stems mainly from the widespread belief that they are free from negative side effects and can stimulate natural healing processes in the body and thus reverse medical conditions naturally. The most popular herbal remedy for reversing white hair today is Fo-Ti root. It can be found as a main active ingredient in almost any natural gray hair product. Fo-Ti (polygonum multiflorum), is a climbing plant native to China and now commonly grown also in Japan and Taiwan. In traditional Chinese medicine it has been used for thousands of years as a popular youth tonic because of its assumed ability to counteract the body’s aging processes. In China it is known under the name He shou wu, which stands for “black haired Mr. He”. The legend has it that an old villager, Mr. He, who lived in the 9th century A.D. took Fo-Ti and restored his black hair, youthful appearance and vitality and fathered children at the ripe age of 60. He lived to 130, maintaining his black hair. In addition to influencing the aging processes, Fo-Ti is credited with many other health-giving properties highly valued in traditional Chinese medicine. Among other things, it is also believed to extend hair growth cycles and thus it can be frequently found in many commercial hair loss products. As is so often the case with herbal cures, Fo-Ti has never been clinically studied as a potential gray hair or hair loss treatment. There is no scientific or recent empirical evidence that it can help reverse graying hair. PABA (para-aminobenzoic acid) and folic acid are two vitamins from the group of B vitamins credited with the ability to reverse graying of the hair. Their presence in the human body is essential to maintaining one’s original hair color and it is possible that a shortage of any of these two vitamins might lead to hair turning white. Their extra intake can be beneficial in gray hair conditions caused by vitamin B deficiency but will not restore original hair color in conditions caused by hereditary factors or old age. Nonetheless, these two vitamins are used in almost any commercial gray hair remedy you can buy. There are many other herbal ingredients such as ginkgo biloba, Siberian ginseng (eleuthero root), Asian ginseng, gotu kola, green tea, rosemary, chamomile, horsetail, etc. that you can find in natural gray hair products, having mostly auxiliary functions, such as promoting a healthy scalp environment, improving the blood circulation in the scalp or providing additional nutrients to your hair follicles. Some other herbs, such as sage, can be used to add color to your hair, working as a natural hair colorant while also giving your hair more shine, which gives the impression of there being less white hair. One traditional method of reversing graying hair, which may sound anecdotal, is rubbing your fingernails against each other to help circulation (as nerve endings are located under the finger nails), thereby gradually reducing the amount of white hair. It can be concluded that no scientific proof exists that any known exercise or herb, vitamin, mineral or nutrient contained in the natural remedies can reverse premature or age-related graying of hair. If you decide to try any commercial herbal oral treatment for gray hair, keep in mind that besides there being no guarantee of its effectiveness, no daily dosage has been established and side effects might occur, despite the widespread belief that herbal remedies are safe and free from them.
Article Source: http://www.new.citynewslive.com
Dody is the editor of GreyHairLoss.com, a website dedicated to educating the public on treating premature white hair and hereditary hair loss. Visit his website to find more information about available gray hair treatments and effective ways of covering gray hair. You are encouraged to use this platform to share your experiences with hair treatments you have used by writing a consumer review. Your feedback is greatly appreciated.
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