If you're a redhead, strangers treat your hair like public property. Here are the questions I hear the most, with the answers I usually keep in my head.
- "Is it natural?" Yes. Natural red hair is caused by variants of the MC1R gene, and only 1 to 2% of people have it.
- "Can I touch it?" Please don't.
- "Do you dye your eyebrows too?" No, they came with the package.
- "Do you burn in five minutes?" Pretty much. Our skin makes mostly pheomelanin, a pigment that barely protects against UV.
- "Are you Irish?" Not necessarily. Ireland has about 10% redheads, Scotland about 13%, but we exist everywhere.
- "Do you have a temper?" No study has ever linked hair color to anger. I only get annoyed when people ask that.
- "Were you bullied as a kid?" A 2014 survey of 1,742 people by a University College Cork researcher found that over 90% of red-haired men and 87% of red-haired women said they had been bullied for their hair. So, yes, probably.
- "Are redheads going extinct?" No. That rumor came from a 2007 press release by a foundation funded by a hair dye company.
- "Is the carpet the same color?" You don't know me well enough for that one.
- "Is it true you're scared of the dentist?" Kind of, and there's a real study about it. See the article on redheads and pain.
Why it gets tiring
Every single question is harmless on its own. The problem is that it's the same ten questions, every week, for your whole life. You end up feeling like a tourist attraction.
How to talk to a redhead
Easy: talk to us like anyone else. Compliment the hair if you want, then move on. We'll love you for it.
Sources
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