Most often, a child’s eye color at age 3 is the same color they will have throughout their entire life. Can Eye Color Change Throughout Life?Ī baby’s eye color can change, with the most dramatic eye color changes occurring up to 6 months of age.īut once eye color is set in childhood, it doesn’t dramatically change in adulthood.
Referred to as heterochromia, this occurs as a result of a benign genetic disorder or faulty developmental transport. It is also possible for genes to cause children to have two different eye colors, such as a blue left eye and a brown right eye. For example, if one parent has brown eyes and the other blue, there is a higher likelihood that their children will have brown eyes. It is possible for a child to have an eye color that neither of their parents has.ĭarker eye colors tend to dominate over the lighter colors. This happens when the melanin that causes dark eye colors is not present when the child is born. By their 3 rd birthday, their eye color can change and become darker. Scientists still do not fully understand how certain other colors, such as hazel and gray occur.Ĭaucasian children are often born with blue eyes. These genes result in the most common eye colors, including brown, blue, and green. The lower the amount of P protein, the less melanin and the lighter the eye. OCA2 produces the P protein, which contributes to the maturation, storage, and production of melanin cellular structures. There are two genes in this region: HERC2 and OCA2. Melanin is a type of pigment.Ĭhromosome 15 has a region that plays a major role in eye color. Most of the genes that determine eye color are associated with melanin production. Genetics are responsible for your eye color.