In a word, no. Experts told Live Science about how the genetics of red hair means the trait is sticking around.
Nevertheless, the myth of an impending red hair extinction isn't a new one.
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There's even the question of whether potentially deadly conditions, such as melanoma, might wipe out redheads, who are especially susceptible to sunburn. While there are people of color with red hair (Malcolm X famously had reddish hair), red hair is often linked with pale skin and, therefore, elevated skin-cancer risk. Redheads' higher melanoma risk isn't only because they burn more easily. It's also due to harmful chemistry from pheomelanin, the pigment that helps create the reddish hair hue, and reduced DNA‑repair protection, which is linked to variants of the gene that causes red hair.
Keeping the flame alive
First, let's look at genetics. A person needs to inherit the recessive version of MC1R — a gene involved in pigment production — from both parents. Someone with only one copy may not have red hair at all, but they can still pass the variant to their children. So, the role of carrying red hair genes through the generations is shared by people of all hair colors, not just redheads.
Redheads celebrate Redhead Day on Sept. 4, 2016 in Breda, a city in the Netherlands. (Image credit: Brian Dowling via Getty Images)For red hair to truly disappear, the relevant variants would have to be steadily removed from the gene pool. In evolutionary terms, that would usually mean people carrying these variants — or people with red hair — were having fewer children than everyone else.
Second, let's look at skin cancer risk. Rees said people with MC1R variants have a greater skin-cancer risk "somewhere in the region of two to four fold."
Theoretically, before the invention of sunscreen and modern medicine, it may have been more likely for redheads to have died of skin cancer before they had children. Given that the trait has persisted, though, are there any evolutionary benefits to having red hair?
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However, the frequency of red hair could still fluctuate. Jackson said the frequency may "go down somewhat as people become more mobile" and have children with partners from regions where MC1R variants are less common. But that would be a change in frequency, not extinction.
As long as MC1R variants persist silently in carriers — and as long as redheads are not having significantly fewer children than everyone else — the world's redheads are not about to disappear.
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