How can I keep my hair from becoming white?

In most cases, the only way to prevent your hair from becoming white is to dye it. There’s not much you can do about your genetic makeup and your genes play a large role in when or if you’ll have white hair.

However, there some exceptions: white hair can be due to reversible or preventable factors, including:

• vitamin or nutrient deficiency – examples include vitamin B12 or copper deficiency

• thyroid disease – timely diagnosis and treatment may prevent changes in hair color

• smoking – the connection between greying of hair and smoking suggests that quitting could be preventive

• stress reduction – there appears to be a correlation between stress and greying of hair, though it isn’t clear that stress reduction measures can prevent or reverse it.