The fact that redheads have reddish hair, fair skin and a freckled face is due to an alteration in the function of the melatonin-1 receptor gene, or MC1R, which is housed on human chromosome 16. This genetic mutation means that these people do not synthesize eumelanin, the dark pigment that dyes the hair and complexion of brunettes, but they do synthesize pheomelanin, the molecule that normally gives the lips and nipples their pink color and that, in redheads, It also provides an unmistakable vermilion coloration to the hair.
Having fair skin is good for your health in the Nordic countries, where cloudy days abound and it is necessary to absorb all the available light in order for the body to produce vitamin D. In fact, a research carried out by the University of the Basque Country estimated that one of the most common MC1R gene mutations arose between 30,000 and 50,000 years ago, after the departure of Homo sapiens from Africa, as a result of natural selection. And it is that, while the brown skin tone was beneficial to protect against the intense sun in the African continent, the depigmentation of the redheads allowed to take better advantage of the little ambient light available in the European continent.
For Saioa López, head of the study, it was a question of survival: “Vitamin D is necessary for growth, as well as for the correct mineralization of the bones and the development of the skeleton.” Ireland and Scotland have the highest percentage of redheads, with more than 10% of the population. In contrast, in most of Spain, Italy and other Mediterranean countries, the proportion is below 1%.
How likely are you to have redheaded children?
Even if you are not a redhead, and neither is your partner, it is possible that your child is. People with freckles, even if they are not redheads, and even if their parents are not, have a high probability of having the MC1R gene mutation. Therefore, it is possible that one of your children inherits the redhead gene.
On the other hand, there are other studies that indicate that redheads are more likely to develop the most aggressive type of skin cancer, melanoma. The reason is that the MC1R mutation does not normally bind to the PTEN gene, responsible for preventing skin tumors, as published in a study from Harvard Medical School.
