White hair at 20?

My hair is very thick and very dark and board straight. I have had white hair since I was about 11 and the amount that I have increases every year, it seems. Its mostly behind my ears and at the nape of my neck. My father told me that my mother's hair (she died a long time ago) turned white at a very early age, as well.

My question is: How come some people's hair turns grey and white before other people's? I understand WHY I am turning prematurely grey ( i inherited that trait from my mother, I suppose)....I just want to HOW that sort of thing happens.

Does hair age? Would it mean that mine just ages faster then everyone elses?

White hair at 20?

Seriously . . . who cares. It is purely genetic as to when your hair follicles quit producing pigment. Storm (X-Men) rocks the white hair look and so can you!

White hair at 20?

stress

White hair at 20?

I think it's just genetics. I started going grey in my 20's, by the time I was 30 I had beautiful streaks in my dark hair like Lily Munster, but as time marched on my whole head became grey...and I felt like I looked much older since my skin is still smooth and unwrinkled I started coloring and look 20 years younger.

White hair at 20?

There are cells around each hair follicle that give the hair its color as it grows. In time, the cells cease to be able to produce the pigment, and your hair turns white or grey. In most people, those cells are able to keep working for three or four decades; however, in your case, they apparently are unable to continue as long as the average person, so you have white hair. Of course, I don't KNOW why those cells are shutting down production so early, but my guess is that they aren't being properly replaced as cells normally are (strictly my hunch), and the existing ones simly wear out; in a sense, it's a tiny genetic defect, but fortunately not a serious or life-threatening one.