Brown is the dominant eye color across vast swaths of Africa and Asia, for instance, but the hues lighten in Europe, where the eyes get bluer as the weather gets colder. Scientists have tracked down a genetic mutation which took place 6,000-10,000 years ago and is the cause of the eye . Your blue eyes arent really blue. Estonia is the country most known for its fair-skinned, blue-eyed population, followed closely by Finland. Eye damage from UV and blue light appears to be related to your lifetime exposure to these rays, so wearing sunglasses that block 100% UV (and most blue light) should start during childhood, when possible. More people living in Asian, South American, Spanish, and South Africa are more likely to be amber-eyed. Amber eyes are a solid color with a strong yellowish/golden and russet/coppery tint, which may be due to the yellow pigment called lipochrome (also found in green eyes). Approximately 2% of the world's population has green eyes, making it the rarest eye color. In Britain, for example, a 2014 study found that green was more prevalent than brown 30 percent to 22 percent although most were blue, 48 percent. WorldAtlas. The lack of pigment leads to red or violet eyes and often problems with their eyesight. The website WorldAtlas.com takes a stab at estimating the breakdown of eye colors worldwide. This form of hearing loss comes from damage to the inner ear or to the nerve going from the ear to the brain. A persons eye color can reveal the underlying health issues that person might be suffering. Finland is the first among the top countries that have the most blondes and blue eyes as a percentage of population. Nevertheless, green eyes are common in a few parts of the world, like Ireland and Scotland. SEE RELATED: Is blue the rarest eye color? This genetic switch limits how much melanin is produced in the iris effectively "diluting" brown eyes to a shade of blue. Grey 0%. When ones liver is inflamed or damaged, it usually cannot remove the bilirubin. As we have noted, blonde hair and light eyes depend on the amount of melanin extracted. University of Copenhagen. About 5% of the worlds population and 18% of Americans have hazel eyes -- a mixture of green, gold, and orange. It shows up in about 9% of Americans but only 2% of the world's population. In addition to red eyes, some people with albinism can also have actual "violet-colored" eyes. Even though there is a high number of blond and blue-eyed people living in Britain today, the highest percentage of blue eyes is recorded in South East Scotland with 57%. This is why hazel eyes can be mistaken as amber and vice versa. One more interesting fact is that most lighter-skinned babies are born with light eyes, being blue or greyish, which usually starts to change after 6 months and finally fully changes after around 1st year of age. [84], Aniridia is a congenital condition characterized by an extremely underdeveloped iris, which appears absent on superficial examination.[86]. Some medical conditions affect ones eye color. Our website is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Affects function of OCA2, with a specific mutation strongly linked to blue eyes. The iris has two layers. Brown is the most common eye colour. Indeed, one study found evidence of blue-eyed hunters and gatherers roaming Spain 7,000 years ago. [8], The genetics and inheritance of eye color in humans is complicated. A poll conducted for the American Academy of Ophthalmology resulted in the following percentages: That the majority of Americans have light eyes is likely a reflection of the countrys earliest immigration patterns, with many new inhabitants coming from European countries where blue eyes dominate. At the end, what we got was a blonde map of Europe. The highest percentages of fair-haired people can be found around the Baltic Sea (e.g. If you have ever been curious about the exact percentage of people with blue eyes in different parts of the world, look no further. Brown eyes have the highest amount of melanin in the iris, and blue eyes have the least. In the same way, you can get melanoma on your skin, you can also get melanoma in your eye. Approximately 27% of people in the United States and between 8% and 10% of the world's population have blue eyes. Bilirubin thus accumulates in the blood and makes the sclera and skin yellow. The macula, which is at the retina's center, is susceptible to damage as you age. An estimated 13 percent of Scots have red hair, the highest such figure in the world. One more usual hair color is red, and also green eye color, being among the rarest in the world. [93] There are also other studies that challenge these findings. Hazel eyes: What determines hazel eye color. Two factors affect the color of ones eyes: the pigmentation of the eyes iris and the frequency of light scattering by the murky medium in the iris stroma. Black is not an eye color. Scientists believe that all blue-eyed people trace back to a common ancestor, who most likely carried a genetic mutation that resulted in reduced melanin production. Heterochromia (heterochromia iridum or heterochromia iridis) is an eye condition in which one iris is a different color from the other (complete heterochromia), or where a part of one iris is a different color from the remainder (partial heterochromia or sectoral heterochromia). Anisocoria thus refers to an abnormal condition characterized by different pupil sizes. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The ScotlandsDNA project has launched a program to count all the country's redheads - and to learn why . Woman From Denmark With Blue Eyes. Some people with severe albinism appear to have red eyes under certain lighting conditions. Blue eyes as a risk factor for type 1 diabetes, Eye color as a risk factor for acquired sensorineural hearing loss: A review, A global view of the OCA2-HERC2 region and pigmentation. The brown eyes with brown hair is one of the commonest combination in most parts of Europe. In other words, it's impossible to know for sure if your children will have blue eyes or any other color. Eye color is partially affected by light, especially blue eyes, which get their color specifically by light entering and reflecting out of the eye. Blue Eyes - 8 to 10%. [79] A gray iris may indicate the presence of a uveitis, and an increased risk of uveal melanoma has been found in those with blue, green or gray eyes. Furnace, Boiler or Heat Pump? The North American brothers are similarly blonde-haired and blue-eyed. Favorite. Krystina is a Technical Writer with a background in healthcare. The amount of damage depends on wavelength and exposure time . Especially, Intraocular Melanoma. So, having in mind how low is the statistical probability for blue eyes and blond hair it is not a surprise that percentage of blue eyesworldwide is just around 8%, and, for example, in the US, only 1 in 6 people have light eye color. Blue is the most common eye colour in Britain, researchers found. People with blue eyes have a single, common ancestor, according to new research. Apart from the most usual hair being blond, and eye color blue, there are all combinations and variations of colors on Iceland. Sorry, no results has been found matching your query. People with green eyes have a bit more melanin than people with blue eyes. Recent advances in ancient DNA technology have revealed some of the history of eye color in Europe. The content on this site is for informational purposes only. Most researchers believe that blue-eyed individuals may be more dominant among certain populations and less present in others. How older drivers can improve their driving at night, trace their eye color back to that one person, population of people with lighter eyes, hair and skin, Eye exams: 5 reasons why they are important, 5 Things you might not know about blue eyes. Iris color depends on the protein melanin which is stored in special cells, melanocytes. This can make the blue eyes look slightly different depending on the type of lighting conditions. Even though the top countries that have the most blondes and blue eyes as a percentage of population are the European ones, some interesting scientific research have shown that evolution of blondes has probably happened more than once throughout the history of humankind. [26] Hazel eyes are more common in Spaniards, North Africa, the Middle East, and Brazil. Amber eyes have a little more melanin than hazel eyes, and still account for approximately 5% of the population. "Originally, we all had brown eyes" said Eiberg. With a 75.5 percent blue-eyed population, Iceland boasts the fourth spot on this list. The more melanin concentration one has, the darker ones eyes will be. Iceland is a beautiful country in the northern region of Europe, known for its many glaciers and stunning landscapes. However, a blue-eyed child is almost certain if both parents have blue eyes. [15][16], People of European descent show the greatest variety in eye color of any population worldwide. Some people attribute certain qualities to eye color. Quite a bit. Brown is the most common eye color in the United States, just as it is globally. Whats the Difference Between Vitiligo and Albinism? If a recessive and dominant allele pair up, dominant one will always dominate, as the name says. Almost everyone (even people with blue or green eyes) has brown pigment in the back layer of the iris. Thats because eye color comes from melanin, the same brown pigment that gives color to our hair and skin. [5] Neither blue nor green pigments are present in the human iris or vitreous humour. As far as researchers can tell, this was the first person with blue eyes, and everyone who has blue eyes today is a (very) distant relative of this ancient human. Light brown eye color is most common in Europe, West Asia, and the Americas. Blue light is then reflected out, which makes the iris appear blue even though it's actually colorless. Stay Safe. Although rare, green eyes are found to be rather catchy especially . developed a graded system based on the predominant iris color and the amount of brown or yellow pigment present. Hazel 5-8%. Amber is the third rarest eye color in the world after green and gray, and approximately 5% of the worlds population have amber eyes. In contrast, more than 50 percent of the global population is believed to have brown eyes. Definitions of the eye color hazel vary: it is sometimes considered to be synonymous with light brown or gold, as in the color of a hazelnut shell. Eiberg studied the DNA of 800 men and women with blue eyes from varying countries ranging from "fair-skinned, blond-haired Scandinavians to dark-skinned, blue-eyed people living in Turkey and . Diabetes Metab Res Rev. Home Improvement / story. Most Asian and African children are born with brown and black eyes. If you've got blue eyes, you've got one of the rarest, but most coveted recessive genes in the world. Instead, the copper accumulates in the liver and in other tissues, including the iris of the eye. Blue light may also damage your retinas. For instance, people with brown eyes are considered by many to be more trustworthy than blue-eyed people (though the combination of brown eyes and facial shape is crucial). Most people have brown tint in the back layer, but lighter eyes have less tint in the front layer. About half of people living in the U.S. and a higher population in Africa, and Asia are brown-eyed. Green eyes are common in Europe's Central, Western, and Northern regions. If you see a dark outline around your iris -- the colored part of your eye -- this is your limbal ring. It may take up to six months for the gene responsible for creating the pigment in the eyes to activate melanin production. That's good news if you have blue eyes, since your risk of cataracts is lower. (The name of the gene is derived from the disorder it causes, oculocutaneous albinism type II.) By contrast, less than 1 in every 100 people in southern Europe . There is no blue pigmentation either in the iris or in the vitreous body. They were present in south Siberia during the Bronze Age. All About Vision and AllAboutVision.com are registered trademarks of AAV Media, LLC. Hereditary deafness is a major concern in white cats, and even more so if one or both irises are blue in color. Contact an eye doctor if you need medical attention. SEE RELATED: How color contact lenses can make anyone's eyes blue. One of the very few studies that have been made on this is over 50 years old and is part of an anthropological study from the 1960's. The study concluded that somewhere between 50 and 80 percent . In Norway, an estimated 75% of the population . Speaking scientifically, blue eye color and natural blond hair are cause of recessive genes (actually alleles, which are forms of a gene) combination, as opposed to dominant genes which are characterised by darker eye and hair colors (of course, recessive and dominant genes are not only responsible for eye and hair color, but for other genetic inheritance as well). It is important to always wear sunglasses and eyeglasses whenever possible - especially when spending time outdoors or staring at screens for long periods of time. Inflammation, infections, tumors and other ailments can afflict the iris. [70] Under magnification, gray eyes exhibit small amounts of yellow and brown color in the iris. Non-brown eyes have no different color pigments. Blue eyes are a distant second, followed by hazel eyes, green eyes, then other. 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percentage of blue eyes by country