Carrot-top, ginger, pumpkin head, or copper-top, everyone knows what I’m talking about, red hair. The copper-tops only make up 2% of the entire world population, 2%! The life of a redhead is one of constantly sticking out, forget ducking into a crowd to hide from someone you really don’t want to talk to. It’s nearly impossible not to be spotted. In this speech I’m going to tell you about what makes a redhead unique, on the inside. The requirements for anesthesia in redheads is different from those with different colored hair, temperature changes are felt with more force by the red haired, and they’re risk for developing Melanoma and Parkinson’s Disease is much higher. Being a redhead myself, I was inspired to do a little digging to find out why all of these things are so.
First, let me give you a little background on the redheads. An article published in the Molecular Cell Journal in 2013 explains it as a gene called the melanocortin-1 receptor, commonly abbreviated as the MC1R found on the 16th chromosome. A mutation in this gene results in not only the red hair, but more likely than not fair skin, the inability to tan, and a scattering of freckles. Surprisingly enough, like in my case, just because the parents don’t have red hair doesn’t mean the child won’t. Majority of the time the gene is recessive. When both parents carry this recessive gene, the child is born a carrot-top.
Three scientist got together and conducted an experiment to be published in the Canadian Journal of Anesthesia in 2004 to see how a specific anesthesia called Midazolam affects people with red hair verses blond and brown. Half of each group were injected with the chemical while the others were injected with saline as a control group. They tested each patient for their alertness, how drowsy they felt, and their mood. Once all the information had been collected the results were obvious. The conclusion stated that, “Midazolam appears to cause significantly less sedation and cognitive impairment in red haired subjects.” That means when a redhead is sedated, it takes a little more to knock them out before going under the knife. A follow up study revealed that it takes an average of 20% more than those with blond or brown hair. On top of all that, the redhead genotype is the only one out there known to scientist that has an affect on the anesthetic requirement.
It had been rumored that people with naturally red hair are more sensitive to thermal pain. That means when the temperature drops, your redheaded friend will probably be the first to break out the long sleeves. When the heat wave rolls in they’ll be grabbing the fans. To prove this rumor to be true scientists Liem, Joiner, Tsueda, and Sessler conducted an experiment in 2006. They took a group of dark haired people and a group of redheads and tested each persons warm and cold temperature thresholds. To do this they used a machine called the TSA-II Neurosensory Analyzer, which basically is a little computer that measures a person’s response to varying temperatures through vibrations. They hooked everyone up to one of these machines and by the end they had their answer. Compared to other hair colors, the redheads perceive cold temperatures faster and have a lower tolerance by nearly 6 whole degrees. Not only that, the carrot-tops perceive heat faster as well. Scientist have determined the reason for this being that mutation in the melanocortin 1 receptor that I mentioned before.
Unfortunately, every rose has its thorns and being a redhead is no exception. While having the ruby locks gene has its benefits, it also comes with its fair share of risks. One particularly high risk being that they’re much more likely to develop Melanoma. For those of you that don’t know melanoma is a type of skin cancer that appears on the body as a mole or blemish on the skin. It is considered the most dangerous type of skin cancer and the redheads are more prone than anyone else. An article published in the online medical journal Molecular Cell in 2013 breaks it down, normally a person’s body produces a substance referred to as WWP2. A redhead, with the melanocortin 1 receptor, produces another substance that bocks out the WWP2. This substance is needed to activate something called AKT. The AKT is in charge of shielding the body from the harmful UV rays. The redheads aren’t getting this AKT so their walls are down. They’re lacking a major defensive line against melanoma skin cancer that people without the gene mutation have.
Another not-so-good uniqueness redheads carry around with them is their increased likeliness of developing Parkinson’s Disease. The Parkinson’s Disease Foundation defines the disease as a, “chronic and progressive movement disorder that continues to worsen over time.” Scientist from the Department of Nutrition at Harvard University School of Public Health conducted an experiment to see if hair color affected one’s probability of developing PD. It was determined that the risk of PD, “increased with decreasing darkness of hair color.” Upon further digging it was determined once again, thanks to the melanocortin 1 receptor, people with red hair were more likely to develop PD in their old age.
To sum everything up, redheads truly do stand out from the rest. Anesthesiologist have to take special precautions when a redhead comes into the operating room, and turn up the heat when your redhead friends come over because they’ll notice the cold. When the gingers go outside they’re got to be sure to layer on the sunscreen and stay in the shade to avoid skin cancer and lastly, red-haired people need to be on the lookout for Parkinson’s Disease symptoms as they age. So redheads aren’t just unique on the outside.
