While going naturally gray admittedly isn’t easy, effortless or without its challenges, most Silverists agree that the physical benefits, empowering mental shifts and positive community connections you gain outweigh any emotional struggles you might feel along the way. (We’re not even counting how happy your bank account will be!) The key is setting yourself up for success, knowing how to handle your journey and finding your tribe of fellow Silverists who’ve been there, done that and loved the other side of the gray hair journey. 

If you’ve been embracing a clean, healthy lifestyle when it comes to your diet, makeup, household and more but still subjecting your hair to the toxins found in permanent hair dye, we should talk. 

To totally treat your body to the benefits of a healthier lifestyle, you’ll probably want to ditch the dye with the same diligence you eat organic, shop clean skincare or switch to safer home products, like cleaners, detergents and soaps. Not only are naturally gray locks arguably more gorgeous (yes, we’re biased), but also better for your hair, scalp and body. 

Here are just some of the benefits of going gray…

Naturopaths aren’t the only ones talking about microbiomes these days. Science is finally catching up to how the mindful set has been living — studies are showing that there’s not only a growing awareness that our gut’s microbiome is linked to our immune system, but our skin has a microbiome of its own. That means taking care of our skin barrier is good for our skin (and body) health and vice versa.

Because the scalp is obviously a part of our skin and has its own microbiome, ensuring you have a balanced scalp microbiome can lead to a beautiful, healthy head of hair. (Who said science isn’t sexy?).

Let's talk about scalp health. A little cocktail party trivia… when your scalp’s microbiome is balanced, it has a more acidic pH, approximately 5.5 or a little lower. The more balanced you can keep its microbiome, the healthier your hair, the stronger and healthier your natural hair growth and the lower your odds for skin or scalp issues like dandruff or irritation. In fact, balancing your scalp is also one of the fastest, easiest and healthiest ways to solve these issues if you already have them. And it makes sense that the more frequently you use harsh shampoos with sulfates or permanent hair dyes, the more likely they’ll disrupt your scalp microbiome.

Seems like nothing is without consequence… and in the case of covering your grays with toxic dyes, the cost can be too high. Many common hair dyes used in salons or sold on your favorite beauty shelves contain not-so-sexy ingredients, including harsh chemicals like ammonia, hydrogen peroxide, toluene, resorcinol and paraphenylenediamine (PPD), which can cause skin issues, irritations, allergies and more. Nix permanent haircolor in place of naturally gray grow-out and reduce your exposure to unhealthy chemicals.

Like we said, regularly using permanent hair dye disrupts the microbiome, but what you see is actually scalp irritation and damage. Their harsh chemicals also can strip away natural oils, which can cause dryness, redness, blotchiness and other signs of stress. Let’s just say these ingredients have fairly concerning ratings on the  EWG skin Deep ingredient database and numerous studies have linked them to cancer. Dark hair dyes, in particular, are shown to have a higher link to cancer, according to American Cancer Society and other researchers.

For a little perspective, the first permanent hair dye was invented in 1907 by Eugene Scheuller, the founder of L’Oreal. True, there are many, many more shades and formula spin-offs available than ever before, but fundamentally the hair dyes on the market today have a similar ingredient list containing PPDs, resorcinol and ammonia. 

When you start remembering that your scalp is your skin, consider whether you’d be willing to use skincare on your face or body that touted the same toxic ingredient profile found in permanent hair dyes? 

Once women ditch the dye, they often report unexpected side effects (read: benefits) such as accelerated hair growth, stronger strands, balding/thinning areas filling out, thinner hair appearing fuller, shinier and healthier, rough texture becoming softer, silkier tresses. Not to mention the scalp issues mentioned above — irritation, redness, dryness, dandruff — often seem to resolve themselves with improved scalp health. We think it’s an interesting coincidence that women often report their most significant hair/scalp issue during their peak hair dye years where they’re heavily covering their grays.

Beyond the risk of disrupting your microbiome, there are also studies that link the chemical found in permanent hair dyes to hormonal imbalances. According to NIH, EWG and research published in the International Journal of Cancer, these dyes may be linked to carcinogenic effects and also have other significant side effects of disrupting your hormones. Letting your natural grays grow out gives your body a break from the harmful cycle of exposure to these toxins.

True, we’re supposed to live in the moment but there are no real moments that permanent hair dye is clean, healthy and good for you. Although there aren’t a ton of conclusive studies linking hair dyes to long-term impact on your hair, it stands to reason that chronic exposure to carcinogens isn’t great for the body. Stopping now and transitioning to a naturally gray grow-out means you’ll likely be healthier later.

We already talked about the major time crunch that’s involved in the upkeep of covering your roots. Your wallet also takes a pretty good hit. Regular salon visits or at-home dye jobs can add up to legit cost suck. Let’s just say you start coloring your hair at age 30 and stop at age 60, and you visit the salon monthly and spend $100, that’s $36,000 in hair dye! Instead, save all that cash and invest in something that will bring you more joy, happiness and fulfillment rather than a temporary (color) fix.

There’s a reason celebs, influencers and A-listers are increasingly rocking gray-haired looks. It’s sophisticated, chic and stylish and with so many hot silver-haired Hollywood types rocking the look, we’re betting it’s not just a trend but a real shift in our attitudes toward healthy aging and good lifestyle choices

Not only does this symbolize your self-love, self-acceptance and confidence, going gray is also a big “f you” to the insane cultural rules that we’re pressured to adhere to. Unrealistic beauty standards, combined with ageism, can make us shy away from accepting our silver hair, but the more we let ourselves rock who we really are, the more liberated, empowered and embodied we’ll all be. Not to mention, together we have a shot at changing these ridiculous expectations that literally have us poisoning our scalps.

If getting a beauty or fashion makeover has always been both intriguing and a bit intimidating, consider this your opportunity to make a change. Embracing your natural silver can be an adjustment, especially if you had a darker hair color originally. You may have gone from having dark hair to being nature’s version of platinum. There may need to be some experimentation to “find your colors”. Many women find they can now wear more dramatic colors or that they like to add more definition to their brows or cheeks. The same applies to the wardrobe where many a neutral lover finds they can now change up their colors and wear brighter jewel tones..Play with what’s possible and see how freeing it can be! 

Because letting your hair naturally grow out can be daunting, it’s good to surround yourself with fellow silverists who know just how empowering it is to rock the look. Building a community of people who get you, who’ve been there or who are currently doing this with you helps you stay the course in your journey and keeps you shielded from a lot of the BS that comes from those who just don’t get it.

If you think permanent hair dyes aren’t great for you, just imagine their impact on our planet. From packaging to toxic ingredients, ditching the dye can help lower your personal environmental impact.

Anyone who’s been regularly covering their grays knows that the process is time-consuming, stressful and relentless. Beyond keeping up with the daily coverage between salon appointments or at-home coverage, there’s the juggling of your schedule with trips to your colorist, the commute itself and the anxiety that comes from make sure none of your roots are showing.