• Question: Why are most people born with blue eyes?

    Asked by Beverly to Chris, Josh, Rebecca, Rob, Susan on 22 Jun 2015.
    • Photo: Rebecca Dewey

      Rebecca Dewey answered on 22 Jun 2015:

      Eye colour is determined by the presence of a dye called melanin, being in the iris. This dye is usually brownish-black. When we are first born, there is no dye there yet. As the child develops, the cells within the iris (as well as those in the skin and hair) slowly begin to produce melanin. Most eye changes happen at around 1 year old, this can continue up to the age of 3.

    • Photo: Susan Cartwright

      Susan Cartwright answered on 22 Jun 2015:

      I’m not sure that most people are – I’ve never been introduced to a newborn Chinese or African baby, so I don’t know if they are born with blue eyes or not. My suspicion would be not, and looking at pictures on the web suggests not as well (though what it mostly suggests is that it’s hard to get a picture of a newborn baby with its eyes open!).

      Most European babies initially have blue eyes because the production of the pigment that colours our eyes, skin and hair – melanin – takes a little while to get going, so initially the baby has little pigment in its eyes, which makes them appear blue.

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