The eye color of humans is dependent on multiple genes. You might observe that you have the same eye color as your sibling, but how your eye color appears is unique. No one in the world has the same eye color as you which is unique like your fingerprint. Scientists defined common eye colors such as brown, blue and green. The scientists are still exploring how other combinations of other colors develop such as bluish-gray and hazel.
Many people believe that your eye color depends on the eye color of your parents. Contrary to that popular belief, it is not a result of a mix of the eye color of your parents. Genes play from each parent but your eye color is all about chance. People believe that they can predict the color of a child’s eye using the eye colors of parents’ and grandparents’. It is important to know that eye color is not simple to predict. The passing of genetic traits is very complex. People expect that if both parents have blue eyes, they will have a blue-eyed child. Since genetic traits are so complicated to pass down, it’s possible for two blue-eyed parents to have a brown-eyed child.
The amount and distribution of melanin or the brown pigment in your iris will determine your eye color. To explain it very simply, brown eyes have more pigment than blue eyes. You may say that you and your family members share the same eye color, the truth is the amount and distribution of melanin in the iris is unique to each person.
Facts About Eye Colors
The most common eye color in the world is brown eyes. People often mistook it as black because sometimes brown eyes can appear black. People with blue eyes have a specific genetic trait. They also have a lower risk of developing cataracts than people with dark brown eyes. The rarest eye color in the world is green eyes. Only 2% of the world’s population have green eyes.
Is It Possible to Have Two Different Colored Eyes?
Heterochromia is a condition when someone has two different colored irises. The types of heterochromia include central, complete, and sectoral or segmental. Heterochromia can be present at birth or develop later in life. Some babies are born with blue eyes but turn darker as the melanin develops in the first three years.