Tag: Melanocortin 1 receptor

A new study measured the anxiety that redheads feel about the dentist and concluded that they are not only nervous, but are more than twice as likely to avoid a visit altogether compared with their brunette and blonde counterparts.

……………...Redhead....brunette,,,,,,,,,,,, blonde,,,,..
Previous studies have found that people with red hair are typically more sensitive to pain and more resistant to anesthesia — and require about 20 percent more of it to be effective.

Red hair is usually caused by a mutation in a gene called MC1R, which produces the substance that gives hair, skin and eyes their color. Some studies have indicated that this mutation may also affect the way pain is felt.

Resources:
BBC News August 11, 2009
Journal of the American Dental Association 2009 Vol 140, No 7, 896-905

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