Over the last few years I’ve met 4 people again who had bright red hair when I knew them 30 or more years ago. I had problems recognizing them because each of them had hair that had become more brown than the red that I knew them for.
I just looked this up online and it is apparently pheomelanin that produces those bright orange shades. As a red head ages, the hair follicles produce less pheomelanin. More eumelanin is produced which leads to the browner colours.
In this society that seems to idolize youth, It would not surprise me if those bright colours of orange that young redheads are known for, would be chased by those who are more vain. Thus, a person afflicted with browning hair might die their hair as early as their twenties to keep the desired brightness.
And hair dyes for red hair are more easily washed out, so those that dye, must do so every month. The sun also will fade red hair so UV blockers are recommended for bright hair.
Compare this with blonde hair. Blonde hair becomes platinum blonde with age (i.e. grey hairs), which is arguably a brighter shade of blonde. There are however those people who had blonde hair as a kid and it became varying shades of brown as they aged into adulthood. But they will get platinum blonde hair as they reach old age so it is only temporary. (Though the brown might last for decades!)
There are also people like myself who have dark hair but if they spend enough time in the sun, will end up with blonde streaks through their hair. So sun is good for making hair more blonde.
And, in fact, those red heads, themselves, will eventually become grey in their upper ages. Thus blonde seems to win in the end for virtually everyone.
So there are people who are a blonde sandwich. They are blonde in their youth, brunette as adults and white haired in their latter years.
But if you want to try out all the colours of hair, it’s better to be a redhead. Red as a youth and early adult, brown in their adulthood and blonde when they are in their latter years.
