Gentlemen really do prefer blonds, study finds
It was supermodel Heidi Klum who perhaps most pithily summed up the experience of being blond when she compared it to “buying yourself a light-bulb.”
That may once have been written off as nothing more than lazy cliché, but, according to evolutionary science, she was absolutely right: gentlemen really do prefer blonds.
Researchers conducting the largest ever genetic investigation into hair colour have discovered that, among people of European descent, women are 20 per cent more likely to have blond hair than men.
It means that, as mankind evolved, blond women have been disproportionately more successful at passing on their genes.
A team at King ’s College London set out to discover why.
Using their discovery of more than 100 new genes known to play a major role in determining human hair colour, they attempted to identify any connections between the “blond genes” and those known to influence good or poor health.
They also sought to establish any links between a genetic propensity for blondness and femininity itself in the X chromosome. None, however, was found. It has led them to conclude that throughout human history, blond women have enjoyed a “mating preference.” In other words, men have been more likely to want to procreate with them simply because of how they look.
Published in the journal Nature Genetics, the study marks a breakthrough in the understanding of hair colour.
Although previous studies have found that a large percentage — around 97 per cent — of hair colour variation is explained by heritable factors, only 12 hair colour genes had been identified up to now.
In order to identify the previously unknown hair colour genes, researchers analyzed DNA data from almost 300,000 people of European descent, together with their self-reported hair colour information from sources including the UK Biobank.
“Our work helps us to understand what causes human diversity in appearance by showing how genes involved in pigmentation subtly adapted to external environments and even social interactions during our evolution,” said Tim Spector, the joint lead author of the study, who took part in the research.
“We found that women have significantly fairer hair than men, which reflects how important cultural practices and sexual preferences are in shaping our genes and biology.”
The team has said it believes the discovery of the new genes will significantly improve the ability of forensic investigators to track down criminals using DNA.
It also promises new insights into conditions related to skin pigmentation, such as skin, testicular, prostate and ovarian cancers.