Despite consistent efforts to thwart Mother Nature, it’s inevitable for many of us that our hair will go gray. But recent findings hint at a potential route to get those telltale silvered strands back to their original hue, according to a paper published online in The FASEB (Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology) Journal.

For the study, a team of German and U.K. researchers evaluated 2,411 patients with vitiligo. (Vitiligo is a skin disorder characterized by hair that prematurely turns gray and by the appearance of white patches on different parts of the body.) Scientists found that a topical treatment of a drug compound called PC-KUS, or pseudocatalase, not only returned pigment to the skin but also to depigmented eyelashes. Researchers viewed the results as a potential remedy for graying hair.

“For generations, numerous remedies have been concocted to hide gray hair,” said Gerald Weissman, MD, the editor-in-chief of The FASEB Journal. “But now, for the first time, an actual treatment that gets to the root of the problem has been developed.”

PC-KUS works by treating oxidative stress—a metabolic process linked to disease development—that causes a large amount of hydrogen peroxide to accumulate in the hair follicle and bleach strands from the inside out.

But don’t rush to the store just yet, because much more research needs to be done before a cure for gray becomes available to consumers. According to news reports, a number of companies are studying catalase and other anti-gray enzymes. Cosmetic giant L’Oreal announced the creation of a pill that would put an end to gray hairs two years ago. That pill will, reportedly, launch in 2015.

Until then, consumers will just have to learn how to handle the presence of nature’s silvery streaks peppering their locks. Click here for some common sense tips.