Honey causes premature graying? Rubbish!

Yashoda asks:
I have heard people say that if honey comes in contact with hair, the hair turns prematurely grey. Is this true? I do a facial massage with honey and rose water. This worries me.

This is an absolute false statement with no scientific basis – just one of those various myths associated with premature graying!

If you are applying a face mask containing honey and some of the stuff accidently adheres to the adjacent sideburns or fringes, it cannot turn your hair grey. The same holds true even for topical application of honey on the scalp!

While it is true that honey contains an enzyme that produces peroxide when dissolved in water, the quantity is so less that it cannot make any significant difference to your hair color, forget about premature graying!

Honey is packed with known and unknown health-giving ingredients. How can it be harmful externally or internally?

Premature graying happens due to various other factors, heredity and stress being the chief contributors and certainly not due to honey application!

Some girls even use diluted honey water as an after-shampoo last rinse to get soft, manageable hair and I have never seen their hair getting bleached or turning gray.

So go ahead and use honey in your face packs as well as your hair masks. Both your skin and hair will benefit from its use. Also read the post Honey for soft skin.

In fact, honey is excellent if taken even internally. It is easy to digest and gives instant energy. It has 3 varieties of sugar besides many minerals and vitamins.

It contains antioxidants and as such consumption of such a wonder food could actually delay the ageing process of your skin as well as your hair and ward off premature graying. However moderation is the key, so use your discretion and consume not more than 2-3 tsps of it.