Obama's gray hair: White House pressure or heredity?

The New York Times made quite a bit this morning about President Obama's gray hair, noting that after only 44 days in office, the president -- facing a global economic meltdown, two wars and a growing cadre of Americans who are out of work and at risk for losing their homes -- is already turning gray.

"Well, that didn’t take long," wrote the Times' Helene Cooper. "Just 44 days into the job, and President Obama is going gray."

But the truth is that Obama started going gray -- and noticeably so -- on the campaign trail, as any number of reporters commented on at the time. 

Jon Swaine of Britain's Telegraph wrote in October, "As he enters the final few days of his campaign, with hundreds of sleepless nights behind him, patches of salt and pepper that have sprouted all over his head mark out Mr. Obama, now 47, as a man firmly in middle age."

Obama started talking about his flecks of gray back in the summer. "When I started this campaign people called me a young man," he often said. "They're not calling me that anymore." Even the NYT had the grace to acknowledge that candidate Obama spoke about his graying locks at a campaign rally in Virginia last August, saying:

I’ve been running for president for about 19 months now. Folks are noticing that I’ve got a lot more gray hair now than when I started.

In fact some critics wondered if candidate Obama, then 46 to rival John McCain's 72, was dyeing his hair gray to look more distinguished. New York Magazine headlined its piece: "Team Obama Pulls the 'Gray Hair' Stunt Again."

Maybe it's heredity.

Still no one is denying that presidents gray in office. Just take a look at the last guy, George W. Bush.

-- Johanna Neuman

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Photo (top left): Obama in January 2008. Credit: Associated Press; Photo (top right): Obama in October 2008  Credit: Reuters Photos: George Bush. Credit: Associated Press.

Comments

[craig]

What will he look like if he lives through the full eight years?

[Salviati]

You idiot, these men are multi-millionaires and are in front of cameras continuously, you think they do their own hair? They have hairstylists that color their hair dumbass.

[Cru]

It's not the job itself.. it's the onslaught of truth you're told once indoctrinated.

[Crowgirl]

Of course he colored his hair during the campaign. Are you that naive.? First he wanted to to look young and now he wants to look presidential. Obama has always been about image and a good part of the country fell for it.

[FT]

He's probably been dying his hair for years. Only now he's either too busy as president or his hair dresser hasn't gotten the security clearance to do the dye job.

[Ervin Whitfield]

Obama should do as I do...use "Just For Men" hair color!

[problemwithcaring]

Thank God for the NY Times. Wait, Why are newspapers becoming obsolete?? Who will write stories about what we can see with our own eyes, now???!!!

[Mark]

gee, no mention that fmr. President Clinton DYED his hair gray while in office???

[Kevin]

I would guess that the more people talked about his lack of experience, the less hair dye he used, but he had to make the transition gradual because getting caught dyeing his hair would have been embarrassing.

[Connor Michael]

Interesting article, except it assumes (falsely) that gray hair is caused by stress.

This a very old, and a very popular myth, but a myth nonetheless. I knew a guy who went gray in high school, even though he didn't seem to have more stress than anyone else. Some people still have naturally pigmented hair in their 70s, despite having lived a very difficult life.

Gray hair is caused by GENETICS. Whenever your mom and dad went gray is about when you will start to go gray.

Yes, George W. Bush did gray while in office. Then again, look at his dad. George H. W. Bush was already gray when elected, because he was elected when he was already 65. George W. was elected when he was 55. Do the math. Sometime in between 55 and 65 is when Bush men go gray. It's also when most men from other families go gray, regardless of having held political office.

Other things have been linked to getting gray hair earlier in life. Poor nutrition (especially not getting enough B vitamins), thyroid problems, anemia, and even smoking can all contribute to the body's aging process that causes gray hair.

Could it be Obama's admitted smoking habit that's making him go gray? Or a variety of other factors. Read up: http://www.rps.psu.edu/probing/gray.html

[obama is going grey]

hahahahahaha, he's going sour as well. To the writer, its "grey" not "grAy"

[Alex]

Yes graying might be heredity but there things you could do. My brother who is 5 years older than me has almost 100% gray hair. I on the other hand have maybe around 3% gray hair. I think it all boils down to what you use to wash your hair and how much nutrition it gets as we age. For few years now, I use proanagen shampoo and since then I sense my graying has slwoed drastically.

[Chahana Sigdel]

He could easily hide them if he wants too!.

Maybe grey makes you look more responsible?

[Sigdel]

He could easily hide them if he wanted too!

Maybe Grey makes you look more responsible!

[craig]

Obama just keep doing your thing, midterm doesn't mean much.
You have many supporters behind you, until the feds take care of your hair.

[A. Hick]

It's the biological clock, not the stress of the office, and an illusion. Most men during the era of color photography, motion pictures, and television (Reagan and Eisenhower notwithstanding) have been elected president at the age (late 40s to mid 50s) when graying is beginning to take hold, and if they stay in office for two terms, voila, they come out of office gray.

An interesting point is Teddy Roosevelt, the youngest man ever to become president. There are no color photographs of him of course (he became president in 1901), but his presidental portrait (a color painting) shows a vigorous young looking man (he was 42 when he took office) with completely brown-reddish hair. While no color photos of him were ever taken, the images most American associate with Teddy the politician are not those of his actual Presidency, but photographs of the bloviating portly Bull Moose Teddy of 1912 (aged 53). His health was in decline by then due to illnesses contracted during safaris after leaving the White House, and an assassination attempt during the 1912 campaign, and he would die, exhausted from his post presidental activities, in 1919 at a relatively young (for a canditate today) age of 60.

His premature death probably had a profound hidden effect on the history of 20th century America. By the end of his life, he was the undisputed leader of the liberal movement in the United States, and the leading canditate for the Republican nomination for president in 1920, a Republican party that had been the governing party of the United States for most of the period since the Civil War, and one that had a vigorous liberal and reformist wing. His death and the trimuph of the conservatives through Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge began to drive liberals from the Republican Party, where they finally found a home with Teddy's counsin, Franklin Roossvelt, in a Democratic Party radically transformed (beginning with Woodrow Wilson) from its reactionary Southern sectionalism into a national party capable of governing the country during the Depression and World War II.

[Rawl]

Who cares? Let the man run the country, live his life, and do what he sees as best for him and his health. Women dye their hair everyday and noone thinks twice about it. We should be more concerned with what he's doing with our tax dollars than dying his hair.

[Ms. Rawl C. Campbell-Dunn]

One last comment before returning to my homework...I am a single parent of 4 working 2 jobs and earning a doctorate degree in Human Services. At times it is difficult to feed my family, keep the lights on, and continue with my education. These are more pressing concerns for myself and most of this country (the U.S.) than President Obama's hair color. Let us focus on the real problems and not be distracted by the minute. And for the record...I dyed my hair a couple of days ago and I look fantastic!

[WhiteWedding]

Clinton dyed his hair to look more stately/mature. He even dyed it different shades of gray depending who he was speaking to. No doubt the presidency ages these men, but come on, Obama WANTS to look more mature, more seasoned. Don't forget Axelrod was Clinton's right-hand man too. Obama's handling is Clinton-II.