Serum Vitamin B12 Levels and Premature Hair Graying: A Hospital Based Study

Background Premature graying of hair can lead to immense psychological distress in young children and adolescents. Its exact etiology is not fully elucidated but genetic, environmental and nutritional factors have been implicated Materials and Methods This was a case control study conducted in a tertiary care hospital in North India in which 60 patients with premature hair graying and equal number of age and sex matched controls were included and serum Vitamin B12 levels were measured in both cases and controls. Results Serum Vitamin B12 levels were significantly lower in patients of premature canities as compared to control population. However there was no statistically significant correlation between the levels of Vitamin B12 and grades of graying. Conclusion The results of this study further strengthen the role of vitamin B12 in premature canities, however further studies with larger sample size are required to definitely delineate its role in premature hair graying.