The New York Times published the article “The Pain of Being a Redhead” by Tara Parker-Pope in August 2009.  The article states that redheads feel more pain than their blond and brunette counterparts.  Read the excerpt below or click here for the entire article.

From the NYT article:

“Researchers believe redheads are more sensitive to pain because of a mutation in a gene that affects hair color. In people with brown, black and blond hair, the gene, for the melanocortin-1 receptor, produces melanin. But a mutation in the MC1R gene results in the production of a substance called pheomelanin that results in red hair and fair skin.”