Baby Hair Color Calculator
Hair Color Predictor for Babies
What Color Hair Will My Baby Have?
Waiting for a new baby to arrive takes time, and most parents use this time to speculate about who their baby will be and what their baby will look like. From hair color to hobbies, parents are always eager to know what the future will hold for their little ones!
If you’ve asked yourself–what color will my baby’s hair be?—you’re certainly not alone! It is only natural to be curious, especially if your family has a signature color.
Like many other attributes, hair color is a genetic feature, but you may be surprised by how much variety can still be found in families. Since hair color is mainly genetic, your own genes and the genes of your parents can work as a baby hair color predictor—here’s how.
How Genes Influence Hair Color?
It’s no secret that hair color can carry across families, but small genetic changes can lead to surprising outcomes. Your baby’s hair color will be inherited from the genes you and the other parent pass on, but what is really going on as those first strands of hair begin to grow on your little one’s head?
Melanin is the physical factor that will decide your baby’s hair color, especially a variation called eumelanin. Eumelanin impacts how light or dark someone’s hair is. Babies with black hair have a lot of eumelanin, while blonde babies tend to have a small amount. Other types of melanin, like pheomelanin, can influence color too, giving it a red hue instead.
Most commonly, your baby’s hair color will be determined by the MC1R gene, which controls what types of melanin are produced and at what volume. However, other genes can modify the hair on your baby’s head too. Different dominant and recessive genes can come together to change up the color of your baby’s hair on a cellular level.
Baby Hair Color vs. Baby Hair Shade
The genetics that influence hair color impact us on two levels—hair color and hair shade. Hair color is the actual color of your baby’s hair. Most people fall into common color categories, like blonde, brown, or black. However, hair shade—how light or dark that color is—can also come into play, leading to a completely different appearance.
This is where you see more unique colors, like strawberry blonde or auburn. Your baby’s hair color is a numbers game, but it is important to remember that we don’t always know all the factors at work. A Punnett calculator can be used to estimate the likely hair color of a child, but some babies have a style all their own – genetic variations do happen!
Hair Color Statistics: Understanding Your Baby’s Hair Color on a Global Scale
A hair color genetics chart can help you to better understand the most likely outcome for your child’s hair—but what does that mean in the grand scheme of things?
Here is what World Population Review has to say when it comes to the breakdown of hair colors around the world:
● Black Hair: 75-85%
● Brown Hair: 11%
● Blonde Hair: 2%
● Red Hair: 1-2%
Does Baby Hair Color Change?
What will my baby look like as they get older? Genetics can give you a clue, but only time will tell!
Although it is very common, many parents are surprised to see baby hair color change throughout the years. Your baby’s hair color will likely change from the moment they arrive all the way into early childhood. Some people even experience changes in hair color as adults!
When you use a baby hair color calculator, it is actually more likely to tell you what to expect a few years after your bundle of joy arrives. Baby hair color tends to go from darker to lighter before settling into a darker shade again as they age.