What Is the Rarest Hair Color?

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Last Reviewed:March 22, 2023 by Gabrielle Marks

What Is the Rarest Hair Color?

Red is the rarest hair color. Only 1% – 2% of the entire world’s population naturally have red hair. The reason for the rarity is related to chromosome 16. Redheads have two copies of a recessive gene that causes a change in a protein named MC1R. It is rare for a person to have two copies of a recessive gene that causes red hair. [1]

Red Hair Traits

Though redheads have the thickest hair, they actually have the least number of total hair strands. According to The Database of Useful Numbers from Harvard University, the number of hairs on the human head ranges from 90,000 to 150,000. Blondes boast the most hair strands at 150,000, followed by brunettes at 110,000. Black-haired individuals average 100,000, while redheads bring up the rear with 90,000.

Interestingly, on a quick tangent, all hair colors share the same number of body hairs averaging 25,000, eyelashes at 420, and eyebrows at 600. [2]

Health Traits Redheads Share

Interestingly, the mutated gene that causes red hair appears also to cause some health conditions to be more common in redheads.

In the unfortunate health column, redheads are 10 to 100 times more susceptible to melanoma [3], more sensitive to cold and hot sensations, and more resistant to local anesthesia. [4] Redheads may also be more susceptible to Parkinson’s Disease [5] and endometriosis. [6]

The good news is redheads synthesize vitamin D more efficiently, which is crucial for bone health. [7] Redheaded men are also half as likely to develop prostate cancer. [8]

Redhead Historical Facts

According to Marion Roach, author of The Roots of Desire: The Myth, Meaning, and Sexual Power of Red Hair, strong perceptions, both positive and negative, have surrounded redheads for centuries. For example, in Greek mythology, redheads transform into vampires after they die; during the Inquisition, redheads were burned as witches; and a Corsican proverb instructs you to spit after you pass one. [9]

Famous Redheads

Redheads make us laugh with such notable comedians as Lucille Ball, Carol Burnet, Red Skelton, and Conan O’Brien. Redheads have ruled their world. Queen Elizabeth I of England had red hair, and King David of the Bible was purported to have red hair. Mary Magdalene and Achilles are also depicted as having red hair.

Famous Redhead Imposters

Many celebrities you think of as redheads were not born with that color. Here are just a few that may surprise you.

Amy Adams

Amy Adams told The New York Times that changing her blonde hair to red dramatically influenced her acting career.

Christina Hendricks

Unlike many actresses who first tried out red hair for a role, naturally-blonde Christina Hendricks died her hair red when she was 10! “I had a cool mum,” the actress told Cosmopolitan.

Cynthia Nixon

Probably best known as the fiery redhead Miranda on Sex and the City, Cynthia Nixon had to dye her naturally blonde hair to play the role. In an interview, she told Marie Claire, “I like the red very much…but it’s a lot of work to maintain.”

See More At: Famous Redheads . . .Not! Why They Dumped Their Natural Hair Color