percentage of blue eyes by country

In the same way, you can get melanoma on your skin, you can also get melanoma in your eye. This is due to meager amounts of melanin in the iris, which allows the underlying blood vessels to show through. [citation needed], Those with lighter iris color have been found to have a higher prevalence of age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) than those with darker iris color;[41] lighter eye color is also associated with an increased risk of ARMD progression. When ones liver is inflamed or damaged, it usually cannot remove the bilirubin. Eye color is a polygenic phenotypic character determined by two factors: the pigmentation of the eye's iris[1][2] and the frequency-dependence of the scattering of light by the turbid medium in the stroma of the iris. Gray eyes can also be found among the Algerian Shawia people[69] of the Aurs Mountains in Northwest Africa, in the Middle East/West Asia, Central Asia, and South Asia. : 9 In humans, the pigmentation of the iris varies from light brown to black, depending on the concentration of melanin in the iris pigment epithelium (located on the back of the iris . Symptoms include dry, irritated eyes and blurred vision. But a survey of more than 25,000 people from 12 countries has . In the U.S., that proportion is higher, at about 27%. [18] Other genes implicated in eye color variation are SLC24A4[19] and TYR. Trauma and certain medications, such as some prostaglandin analogues, can also cause increased pigmentation in one eye. Iceland, the northernmost country of the bunch, has the greatest percentage of people with blue eyes. developed a graded system based on the predominant iris color and the amount of brown or yellow pigment present. The blue-eyes stereotype: do eye color, pupil diameter, and scleral color affect attractiveness? About 5% of the worlds population have hazel eyes. [32] The bright yellow eyes of the great horned owl are thought to be due to the presence of the pteridine pigment xanthopterin within certain chromatophores (called xanthophores) located in the iris stroma. [26] A 2002 study found that the prevalence of blue eye color among the white population in the United States to be 33.8% for those born from 1936 through 1951, compared with 57.4% for those born from 1899 through 1905. Due to this large concentration of collagen, the light is reflected differently than other eye colors. Percentage of Population with Blue Eyes Country Percentage of Population with Blond Hair; 89%: 80%: 75%: 78%: 65%: 75%: 90%: 70%: 85%: 70%: 65% . Eye color in non-human animals is regulated differently. Gray eyes are common in parts of Central Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and among the Algerian Shawia people in Northwest Africa. We know this happens because the body produces less melanin in people of European ancestry. The iris has two layers. Age-Related Macular Degeneration. Especially, Intraocular Melanoma. An estimated 29% of the population of Edinburgh, Scotland, has green eyes one of the rarest eye colors worldwide. Another hypothesis about heterochromia is that it can result from a viral infection in utero affecting the development of one eye, possibly through some sort of genetic mutation. Almost everyone (even people with blue or green eyes) has brown pigment in the back layer of the iris. That little DNA blip was blue eye color, according to researchers at the University of Copenhagen. While there are still many questions to investigate and explanations to find, researchers in Europe are noticing a significant portion of those with type 1 diabetes also have blue eyes. [91], Iris color can provide a large amount of information about a person, and a classification of colors may be useful in documenting pathological changes or determining how a person may respond to ocular pharmaceuticals. That's called phototoxicity. If you have blue eyes, it means the iris part of your eyes lacks melanin, so, technically, blue eyes don't have any color. Blue eyes are caused by a gene mutation. Hazel eyes: What determines hazel eye color. One possible explanation for the difference in the appearance of gray and blue eyes is that gray eyes have larger deposits of collagen in the stroma, so that the light that is reflected from the epithelium undergoes Mie scattering (which is not strongly frequency-dependent) rather than Rayleigh scattering (in which shorter wavelengths of light are scattered more). . Brown is the most common eye color in the United States, just as it is globally. Red hair is . Even Sweden, the world's blondest country, has had a drop in the proportion of blondes to brunettes of nearly 20 per cent since 1948. . The Netherlands is one of the most interesting countries in the world, with a fascinating history and culture that sets it apart from many others. An article released Monday in the peer-reviewed . It is, therefore, essential to remember that no matter what your eye color is, it is important to take care of your eyes, shield them from harmful UV radiations, and visit an opthalmologist for regular checks. SEE RELATED: How color contact lenses can make anyone's eyes blue. The green color is from a combination of a blue hue from Rayleigh scattering and "yellow" from the yellow pigment called lipochrome. A baby's eyes may be blue during this time, but later change color. While blue eyes may be rare, they're among the most common eye colors at birth. It shows up in about 9% of Americans but only 2% of the world's population. More people living in Asian, South American, Spanish, and South Africa are more likely to be amber-eyed. Although these conditions cannot permanently change the color of the iris, they generally affect the eyes sclera or cornea. Now, lets get back to our main questions, which country has the most blue eyes and which country has the most blondes. [4] This is the same scattering that accounts for the blue appearance of the sky. By Verla05. The researchers found four key areas of the genome where variation closely correlated with skin color differences. Blue eyes aren't actually blue. 3. Common Eye Disorders. As explained by livescience.com, "a single mutation which arose as recently as . View Reports-/5-RATE Rather than including a blue pigment, they actually just lack the pigment that makes eyes brown. People with brown eyes have high concentrations of . Priscilla Vu, MD, is a board-certified ophthalmologist. How much lighter are the eyes of Northern Europeans compared to everybody elses? ", "Genetic mutation makes those brown eyes blue", "Blue eyes result of ancient genetic 'mutation', "Distribution of Bodily Characters. The genetics of eye color are so complex that almost any parent-child combination of eye colors can occur. In theory, blue eyes may have protected a person from acquiring vision disorders caused by these periods. This would be analogous to the change in the color of the sky, from the blue given by the Rayleigh scattering of sunlight by small gas molecules when the sky is clear, to the gray caused by Mie scattering of large water droplets when the sky is cloudy. Although rare, green eyes are found to be rather catchy especially . Both parents have to pass along the blue eye gene in order for their child to have blue eyes. The brown eye colour is in the US the . When a child was born, there is almost no melanin in the iris, so their eyes are blue. Hazel/amber is the next rarest of these. All maps, graphics, flags, photos and original descriptions 2023 worldatlas.com. Blue eyes are mainly due to the low concentrations of melanin in the iris stroma. Light or medium-pigmented brown eyes can also be commonly found in South Europe, among the Americas, and parts of Central Asia, West Asia and South Asia. It was created by the anthropologists Rudolf Martin and Bruno K Schultz in the first half of the 20th century. The iris is the colored part of the eye. 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). Aesth Plast Surg. As the child develops, melanocytes (cells found within the iris of human eyes, as well as skin and hair follicles) slowly begin to produce melanin. An estimated 89 percent of Estonians have blue eyes. However, the shade of brown varies depending on the portion of the world one resides in. Blue is the most common eye colour in Britain, researchers found. 15 Best Places to Travel in November in Europe, Asia and Tropical Destinations 15 Most Expensive Items You Can Buy on Amazon. In Finland, apart from native Finns, there are Sami people (living in the north of the country in Lapland), which have a greater percentage of dark hair and eye color. More than 80 percent of the inhabitants of Estonia and Scandinavian countries have blue eyes. Around 70% to 80% of the people also have blue eyes. So, take these figures with a pinch of salt. Brown-eyed individuals, on the other hand, have a lot more variation. There is no blue pigmentation either in the iris or in the vitreous body. Brown eyes result from a relatively high concentration of melanin in the stroma of the iris, which causes light of both shorter and longer wavelengths to be absorbed.[27]. While blue eyes may be rare . [9] The earlier belief that blue eye color is a simple recessive trait has been shown to be incorrect. In contrast, more than 50 percent of the global population is believed to have brown eyes. Transillumination defects can almost always be observed during an eye examination due to lack of iridial pigmentation. Finnish people pride themselves in their honesty, humility, pensiveness, and perseverance, which not surprisingly, are all attributes associated with the color blue. Contact an eye doctor if you need medical attention. Hazel eyes are due to a combination of Rayleigh scattering and a moderate amount of melanin in the iris' anterior border layer. 2011;27(6):609-613. doi:10.1002/dmrr.1214. Non-brown eyes have no different color pigments. This is why regular eye exams repay your investment many times over. These seemingly insignificant physical features are two of the most dominant characteristics of Sweden's population. All About Vision does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. As many as 16 genes influence eye color by determining the amount of melanin in the cells of the iris. A person may also have more than one eye color, a condition called Heretochromia, which affects less than 1% of people. These clear lenses block 100% UV both indoors and outside, and automatically darken when they're exposed to outdoor sunlight. Norway. Our website is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Yellowing of the sclera (the "whites of the eyes") is associated with jaundice,[84] and may be symptomatic of liver diseases such as cirrhosis or hepatitis. While researchers have not pinpointed the exact cause yet, they do know that besides age, women with fair skin, blonde hair, and blue eyes have a significantly higher chance of developing macular degeneration. [17], There is evidence that as many as 16 different genes could be responsible for eye color in humans; however, the main two genes associated with eye color variation are OCA2 and HERC2, and both are localized in Chromosome 15. Read our. The term Heterochromia, derived from the Ancient Greek words: heteros, which means different, and chroma, which means color, refers to a disorder in which a person has more than one eye color. On top of that, blue eyes are not truly blue. Blue eyes have almost no tint in the front layer of the iris. If there is enough or too much melanin, the eyes are brown and black. That is because we, of course, share much of genetic heritage with all our ancestors and relatives. [37][38][39][40][41][42][43] The combination can sometimes produce a multicolored iris, i.e., an eye that is light brown/amber near the pupil and charcoal or dark green on the outer part of the iris (or vice versa) when observed in sunlight. Associated with differences between blue and green eyes. 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. Doctors with years of training and experience know how to catch these conditions soon enough to prevent permanent damage. With almost 61 percent of its population having blue eyes, this country is truly unique and undeniably beautiful. The origin of the gene giving rise to blond hair color has been traced back to the last Ice Age 11,000 years ago. However, some studies have suggested that many of these may be more blue-grey in color meaning they contain even less melanin than their blue-eyed cousins. For example, the allele (one of two or more alternative forms of a gene) that is responsible for blue eyes was associated with 49 percent of the sampled remains, suggesting that blue eyes had . All eyes in the country were once brown, but a study revealed they are now 48 per cent blue, 30 per cent green and 22 per cent brown. 2000-2023 AAV Media, LLC. "[55][56][57], Blue eyes are predominant in northern and eastern Europe, particularly around the Baltic Sea. Quite a bit. In contrast, Europe has the widest variety of eye color, and the largest proportion of people with blue eyes. People with blue eyes need to be careful about exposure to bright sunlight. For our research, on the matter of the hair color, we have found the information on Jorian and Cogweb (Cognitive Cultural Studies, from the University of California). After green, gray is the second-rarest natural eye color, with 3% of the worlds population having gray eyes. A whopping 70 to 80% of the worlds population have brown or darkly pigmented irises, making brown the most common eye color worldwide. Approximately 2% of the world's population has green eyes, making it the rarest eye color. (The name of the gene is derived from the disorder it causes, oculocutaneous albinism type II.) In severe forms of albinism, there is no pigment on the back of the iris, and light from inside the eye can pass through the iris to the front. [67], Like blue eyes, gray eyes have a dark epithelium at the back of the iris and a relatively clear stroma at the front. A mosaic can have two different colored eyes if the DNA difference happens to be in an eye-color gene. Eye color not only affects ones personality but also reflects ones ancestry, the melanin concentration in irises, and even ones current health condition. Green 2.0%. Brown is the most common eye colour. [4] The appearance of blue, green, and hazel eyes results from the Tyndall scattering of light in the stroma, a phenomenon similar to Rayleigh scattering which accounts for the blue sky. A person suffering from uveitis requires immediate medical attention to control the inflammation and prevent vision loss. The incidence of blue eyes continues to decline among American children. Gray eyes: A rare and beautiful eye color. Some people with severe albinism appear to have red eyes under certain lighting conditions. Researchers believe there is one ancestor responsible for this eye color. Sitting sixth on this list, Denmark 's population is 60 percent blue-eyed. The world is a beautiful, diverse place, full of unique cultures and individuals. Boys are 3 percent to 5 percent likelier to have blue eyes than girls, but beyond that it's a non-issue -- physiologically speaking. The brown color comes from melanin, a pigment in our eyes that also gives a brown color to hair, skin and other cells. Give Orange. Simply put, in order for someone to have blue eyes and blond hair, both of the alleles combined must be recessive in order to show up. Then, somebody had a genetic mutation with two quirks: It gave them blue eyes and prevented their children from having brown eyes. Brown eyes in an otherwise mostly light-eyed region may point to a genetic leftover and a time in history during which everyone in the world had brown eyes. [73], Although the deep blue eyes of some people such as Elizabeth Taylor can appear purple or violet at certain times, "true" violet-colored eyes occur only due to albinism. [95] Classification systems have ranged from a basic light or dark description to detailed gradings employing photographic standards for comparison. Studies conducted in 2019 found some interesting statistics on blue-eyed populations around the globe. Eye color results from the amount of pigment (melanin) you have in the front layer (stroma). 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Full of unique cultures and individuals caused by these periods with all our ancestors and relatives earlier..., can also get melanoma on your skin, you can Buy on Amazon has been traced to. Have blue eyes, this country is truly unique and undeniably beautiful melanoma your! Gave them blue eyes aren & # x27 ; re among the most blondes regular eye exams repay your many. Full of unique cultures and individuals as all others for that matter ) are the eyes sclera or....

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