Facing the mirror, the temptation is great: grab that first white hair that appears and pull it out immediately. But this small, innocuous gesture actually hides a much more serious risk than it seems.
They often appear by surprise: around a mirror, in the middle of blow-drying, or right at the root of a strand that we wanted to be impeccable. White hair is sometimes seen as little hair traitor, messengers of the passing of time… and, let’s be honest, our first instinct is often to grab them and pull them out. A harmless gesture? No way.
White hair appears naturally with age, when melanocytes – these cells responsible for producing melanin, the pigment that colors our hair – slow down their activity. Some see it as a loss of youth, others as an elegant signature. Today, more and more women are embracing their white hair and wearing it proudly, like Jamie Lee Curtis or Andie MacDowell. However, in everyday life, it is difficult to resist the urge to remove that little rebellious hair that shines under the light. Who has never heard this phrase: “If you pluck out one white hair, two will grow back in its place.” ? Don’t worry, it’s just a legend. Each hair follicle produces only one hair at a time. So, pulling out a white hair will not trigger a hair invasion.
On the other hand, a hair is deeply anchored in the scalp thanks to its hair follicle. It is he who nourishes, grows and colors the hair fiber. When you pull out a hair, you’re not just removing a dead filament: you’re exerting strong traction on that follicle. The area can then become irritated and painful. And if this gesture is repeated, the follicle can be damaged, as explained by Carla Valette, medical intern. Much like a scar that never fully heals, it eventually becomes weaker. In extreme cases, he may even cease all activity.
This is where the real danger lies: pulling out a white hair can damage its follicle to the point that it never produces hair again. In other words, instead of finding homogeneous hair, you risk seeing sparse areas appear, where the hair will no longer grow back.
So the next time a little silver hair catches your eye, resist the urge to pull it out. Give it a touch of color, a clever comb, or let it shine with pride. After all, white hair is perhaps the most beautiful natural accessory you can wear.
