Why Are People With Red Hair More Prone To Skin Cancer?
Source: Health Digest, September 2022
Natural red hair is said to be the rarest of all hair colors. According to Rarest, approximately 1% to 2% of the global population has natural red hair, compared to the 75% to 85% who were born with natural black or dark brown hair. Northern and Western Europe, particularly the British Isles of Ireland and Scotland, are the most common places where people with naturally red hair can be found. Natural red hair is a recessive genetic trait, meaning that both parents must carry the gene in order for it to be passed on to their children. As explained by Eupedia, mutations in the melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R) gene are responsible for someone having red hair.
Someone can also carry genetic mutations for red hair without actually having red hair. Let’s Talk Science explains that someone who has an allele for a recessive trait but doesn’t express it is considered to be a carrier of that gene. Interestingly enough, two parents who have brown hair can still have a child with red hair if both of them carry the recessive allele for the MC1R gene.
The MC1R gene is not only involved in the shade of someone’s hair, but it also plays a part in the pigmentation of the skin, reports Medline Plus. For example, redheads are known to be more likely to have freckles. Redheads have also been reported to be at increased risk of developing skin cancer, but why is this the case?