Scientists say redheads feel pleasure and pain differently

Red-haired women are giving “red hot” new meaning.

In addition to their striking appearance, women with natural red hair have several other enviable differences compared to women with other hair colors.

Professor Eileen Tracey, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford, discusses how red-headed women experience pleasure and pain differently than other women.

The neuroscientist dubbed the “Queen of Pain” shared how difficult it is to study pain, noting that everyone experiences good and bad pain differently on Channel 4’s Today show, MSN reports.

“Pain is subjective, it’s a private experience that you can’t really objectify, and it’s a weird thing in and of itself,” she said.

“Our ultimate goal is to eliminate what we call severe pain, chronic pain, and really target it at the right level and eliminate pain for the patient. You don’t want to eliminate the good pain, but you do want to eliminate the bad pain.”

She went on to add that while experiencing any kind of pain is an individualized experience, redheads have different tolerances and sensitivities than people with other hair colors.

“It has often been commented that women with ginger hair have a different genetic basis for experiencing pain thresholds than women without ginger hair,” Tracey said, according to the Daily Mail.

Redheads – about 2% of the population – have the MC1R gene, which is linked to their unique skin color and sensitivity to touch.

A study from McGill University showed that women with red hair can tolerate 25% more pain than women with other hair colors.

They also experienced less pain when pricked by needles, a study from the University of Oslo reported.

But for those with a lock of auburn hair, the results will be even better.

Scientists have recognized that redheads also experience happiness differently.

A study from the University of Hamburg found that women with red hair have the highest orgasm rate of all hair colors (41%) and have more sex than women with other hair colors, the Daily Mail reports.

“Research shows that the fiery redhead certainly lives up to her reputation,” said Professor Dr. Werner Habermeier.