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Life

23rd Jun 2018

Now we know why some non-ginger men have ginger beards

We all know a few of them!

Olivia Hayes

We all know a few.

Have you ever wondered why some men that don’t have ginger hair, have ginger beards?

It’s something that has stumped us for years now, ever since our male mates started growing them.

Well, it turns out that it’s not just some random coincidence… it’s all down to genes.

According to Vice, a Dutch scientist called Petra Haak-Bloem explained that hair colour is all down to a gene called MC1R on chromosome 16.

Image result for ginger beard gif

“The genes that determine hair color are so-called ‘incomplete dominant hereditary traits’.

“This means that there isn’t one single gene that’s dominant over the rest, but all genes influence each other,” Petra told the publication.

“Generally speaking, people inherit hair colour not only from their parents, but also from their grandparents and earlier ancestors.

“The [pheomelanine gene is mutated] and accumulates in the pigment cells and the person ends up with red hair and fair skin.”

However, if a person has just one of the mutated genes, red hair can appear in sporadic places around the body as a result.

And so, men can end up with red hairs in their beards, on their eyebrows or even on their chests.

You learn something new everyday!