Doctor Questions Doctor

Different hair colors?

So it's not a symptom. It's more of wanting to find out. So my hair on my head is dirty blonde and so are my pubic hairs and armpit hair. But my beard is bright red and my chest hair is black. It's been this way since I hit puberty at 13 years old so 19 years ago. What is the correct terminology for this and is this genetic?

Male | 32 years old

1 Answer

The pigment in hair is the same as in skin and eyes, brown. It is called melanin. The hue of hair, skin and eyes is simply due to the concentration of this pigment in these areas. The cells that make it can vary from one body location to another. While there is likely some fancy dermatology term for different hair colors in different body areas, I think the best one is “normal human”.