When Steve McCurry took the picture of a shy, apprehensive girl in the refugee camp in Pakistan, little did he realize that the world will be captivated by the haunting green eyes of the “Afghan Girl”. So, what is so striking about the green eyes that makes them so attractive? Well, to start with they are extremely rare. An estimated 2% of the world’s population has green eyes, that’s around 14 million out of 7 billion people in the world.
Interesting Facts about Green Eyes
- The colour of the eyes is determined by the pigmentation of the iris and the scattering of light around the iris. Green eyes are the result of a phenomenon called Rayleigh scattering where the light reflects from the yellow-colored stroma.
- Green eye color does not appear at birth. People are usually born with blue or grey eyes, that changes to green over the years.
- Green eyes are most common in Central and Northern Europe.
- Green eyes are more common in women than men.
- Green, blue and brown eye colors change from time to time because of the mood of the person, health/medical reasons, weather, temperature, and the scattering of light.
- According to a survey conducted by AllAboutVision.com, most people consider green as the most attractive eye colour.
- Green eyes are more susceptible to the harmful radiation of the sun. People with green eyes are at a higher risk of ocular cancers.
Fun Facts about People with Green Eyes
- People with green eyes carry an air of mystery around them. They are undeniably good-looking but tend to get a little self-obsessed about themselves.
- They are immensely talented and creative.
- Green-eyed people are bitten by green-eyed monster and can easily become jealous.
- People with green eyes are vibrant and live life to the fullest.
- They are natural leaders and can win any situation with their charisma.
- These individuals passionate about whatever they do.
- They are associated with cat-like traits such as curiosity, agility, spontaneity and sleek.
- People with green eyes are dedicated to long-term platonic and romantic relationships.
- They are highly intelligent and intellectual people.
- In the primitive times, women with green eyes and red hair were considered witches and were put to death. The origin of this myth is not known. However, it may be because green-eyes appear feline-like and cats were associated with witches.
The Science Behind Green Eyes
Eye color is not just a simple genetic trait. Eye color is the result of of interaction between multiple genes (up to 16). Other factors that determine the eye color are the pigments (melanin and lipochrome) on the iris surface and the way light scatters around iris. The iris is typically blue before the melanin appears. This explains why most babes have blue eyes at birth. As babies grow, melanin starts appearing in the eyes. People with green eyes have higher amounts of melanin and lipochrome, pigments responsible for the green hue.
Some of the good-looking celebrities with green eyes are Aishwarya Rai, Adele, Channing Tatum, Rihanna, Tom Cruise, and David Beckham. We are sure these celebrities share some of the above-mentioned interesting facts about green eyes.