Redheads are redheads because of their ginger gene – „a series of mutations in the melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R), a gene located on chromosome 16“. Now we know! Familiar characteristics common in redheads are lighter eye colours, fair skin with lots of freckles, a hightened sensitivity to ultraviolet rays and risk of skin cancer. Red hair accounts for only 0.6% of the global population and is the rarest of hair colours. At 10%, Ireland has the second highest per capita redhead-rate (after Scotland). Born in the wrong age of time, predominantly females endowed with a mass of threateningly red hair were destined to be burned at the stake, because – ooooheee – they harboured mysterious magical powers and rode on broomsticks fuelled by witchcraft. Fortunately the attitude towards enigmatic powers has changed drastically. Today, they are rather considered an asset than a curse and even for a redhead, longevity has become a realistic possibility.

Read article