Cure for grey hair on the way?

Researchers say grey hair arrives due to a high accumulation of hydrogen peroxide in follicles. Our hair is bleached from the inside out.

Socialite Nicole Richie, who dyed her hair grey, arrives at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute Benefit May 6, 2013. Researchers have found a treatment for the skin condition vitiligo is also a potential cure for grey hair. (For those who'd rather not go grey.)

By: Paul Irish Living reporter

Nicole Richie owned her stylish grey updo at this week’sMetropolitan Museum of Art gala. But those who aren’t convinced they should rock silver locks may soon have a permanent solution.

European researchers have gotten to the root of why we go grey and have come up with a potential cure.

A study published in The FASEB Journal (Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology) claims a compound, PC-KUS, can return pigment to hair. Topically administered in a cream, the proprietary treatment is activated by UVB rays.

Hair goes grey when hydrogen peroxide builds up in the hair follicle, hampering the normal production of melanin, which gives colour to our skin, eyes and hair, the research says.

The PC-KUS removes the hydrogen peroxide build up from the follicle, reversing the greying process, researchers found.

The “cure” was discovered while researchers were studying vitiligo, characterized by blotches of unpigmented skin that affects about 1 per cent of people. Michael Jackson said he had this condition.

Researchers treated 2,411 patients and noticed the pigment of the skin and eyelashes returned.

“It’s beyond any doubt that the sudden loss of the inherited skin and localized hair colour can affect those individuals in many fundamental ways,” says Dr. Karin U. Schallreuter, study author from the Institute for Pigmentary Disorders in association with E.M. Arndt University of Greifswald, Germany.

“The improvement of quality of life after total and even partial successful repigmentation has been documented.”

Dr. Gerald Weissmann, editor-in-chief of the FASEB Journal, was enthusiastic about the findings, saying people have made many remedies over the years to hide grey hair, and now it sounds like the researchers may have a permanent solution.

He also points to its impact on people with vitiligo. “While this is exciting news, what’s even more exciting is that it also works for vitiligo. This condition, while technically cosmetic, can have serious socio-emotional effects on people. Developing an effective treatment for this condition has the potential to radically improve many people’s lives.”

There is no word on when the compound will be marketed.