Reds have fewer and thicker strands than blondes and brunettes. On average, redheads have about 90,000 strands, blondes 110,000, and brunettes 140,000. Because each fiery strand is significantly thicker and coarser than its color counterparts, it makes hair look fuller and easier to style.
Red hair is thicker than other colours
Each strand of red hair is generally thicker than other shades which compensates for the fact that redheads have less hair. Apparently they have – on average – 90,000 strands while blondes have 110,000, and brunettes have 140,000.
Gingers tend to have thicker – but fewer – strands than other hair types and they tend to go white rather than grey with age. Hormonal changes during pregnancy are also known to influence hair growth, but some redheads may see their hair colour darken.
Redheads actually have less hair than most other people. On average they only have 90,000 strands of hair while blonds, for example, have 140,000. However, red hair is typically thicker so it still looks just as full.
Fun facts about red hair strands
Redheads are less likely to go grey. The pigment in red hair typically fades over time from red to blonde and white, but not grey. Redheads produce more Vitamin D in a shorter amount of time than people with other hair colors.
As a group, redheads seem to be more likely to develop certain health conditions and have certain health risks. These include: Increased skin cancer risk. Altered sensitivity to pain.
Some evidence suggests redheaded adults often appear older than their actual age. For example, one study published in 2016 in Current Biology found that adults who carry two copies of the MC1R gene variant are more likely to look two years older than other people their age.
A McGill University study found that redheads could handle more electric shocks than those with different coloured hair. Other research discovered that gingers are better at handling stabbing or sharp pain.
Having red hair and blue eyes is the rarest hair/eye color combination possible. The odds of a person having both of those recessive traits is around 0.17%. Instead, most redheads have brown, hazel or green eyes, according to Medical Daily.
Ireland has the highest number of red-haired people per capita in the world, with the percentage of those with red hair at around 10%. Great Britain also has a high percentage of people with red hair.
Lifespan: up to 20 years in captivity, 5-10 years in the wild. Special Adaptations: Males have an elaborate courtship dance where they throw back their heads, almost touching their tail!
Edwin Liem at the University of Louisville in Kentucky found that redheads are more sensitive to hot and cold, and are hurt by the cold at temperatures nearly 11 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than others.
In other respects, however, redheads turn out to be tougher than other people. Research has produced evidence that redheads are less sensitive to stinging pain in the skin.
Red hair is more fragile, and in shorter supply
Natural ginger hair strands are much more fragile than other hair types. And, while many redheads believe they have lots of hair, in general they technically have fewer strands.
Here's what studies have revealed about redheads and pain: They need about 20 percent more anesthesia to be sedated. They also need more local topical anesthetics, such as lidocaine or Novocain, which is why many redheads have a fear of dentists, according to the American Dentistry Association.
These are recessive traits. The DNA for blonde hair and red hair are about equally strong. People who have DNA for both often have strawberry blonde hair.
Research has shown that people with red hair perceive pain differently than others. They may be more sensitive to certain types of pain and can require higher doses of some pain-killing medications. However, studies suggest that their general pain tolerance may be higher.
One of the many facts about redheads is that their hair will never turn grey. The pigment in their hair that causes it to be red will just fade over time, causing their hair to turn blonde or white, but never grey.
While redheads have the normal risk for traction alopecia from prolonged tight hair tying, and for male/female pattern baldness, they're more prone to winter hair loss.
If both parents passed on a ginger 'infected' hair colour chromosome, the child would be ginger. If one parent passed on a non-ginger chromosome, and the other a ginger chromsome, the child would be non-ginger, since everything other than ginger is dominant over ginger. Ginger is a recessive trait.
According to an article by evolutionary biology professor Mark Elgar, PhD, of the University of Melbourne, blue-eyed redheads are the absolute rarest, with 0.17% of the population having that combination of hair and eye color.
Share selection to: For every 100 people in the world, only one or two will have red hair. And when you meet a red head with blue eyes, you are looking at the rarest colour combination of all for human beings.