People With This Hair Color Don't Need as Much Vitamin D As the Rest of Us
What do Amy Adams, Julianne Moore and Christina Hendricks
have in common? Well, it turns out that they all were all born with a natural, genetic health boost thanks to their flaming red hair. According to various studies collected by
Erin La Rosa in her new hardcover, The Big Redhead Book, natural red heads—who only make up about two percent of the population—have a MC1R gene
mutation that gives them some serious perks.
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As pointed out by Refinery29, a 2003 study reports that this
mutation allows redheads to have a higher threshold for pain. Because of this,
redheads often have issues with sedation when going under general anesthesia for
surgery, necessitating more anesthesia than usual.
Additionally, redheads naturally produce more vitamin D within their bodies than others. Scientists theorize that this inherent
gift is due to the fact that most redheads with pale skin live in cloudier
regions of the world, forcing them to have adapted an improved ability to produce their
own vitamin D. As a result, redheads are less likely to develop illnesses like arthritis and
diabetes.
So, the next time you're about to crack another ‘ginger’ joke to your redhead friends, maybe rethink your actions. After
all, genetics seem to be on their side in more ways than one.