Scientists reveal your blue eyes aren’t really blue
Did you know that blue eyes aren't actually blue?
We're sorry if this comes as a shock to people who are proud of their peepers, but you can't argue with science and statistics.
Eye colour is one of the stand-out features for many, coming in an array of hues, with people opting to wear coloured contact lenses or even undergoing surgery to achieve their desired shade.
Research suggests that blue eyes originated from a genetic mutation in Europe, dating back somewhere between 6,000 and 10,000 years ago.
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Many people love their eye colour, but scientists have made a shocking revelation for those with blue eyes (or fans of the shade).
It turns out we've been living a lie, and researchers have discovered that blue eyes aren't really blue, after all.
So exactly what colour are they?
It turns out it's similar to the phenomenon that makes the sky and the sea appear blue, when actually they are clear.
Clear eyes doesn't quite have the same poetic ring to it, does it?
It's called the Tyndall effect, and the blue shade of the iris actually comes from the scattering of the light.
Dr Davinia Beaver, a biomedical scientist at Bond University in Australia, explained that melanin, or the lack of it in blue eyes, is responsible for the colour.
"Brown eyes contain a high concentration of melanin, which absorbs light and creates their darker appearance," she wrote for The Conversation.
"Blue eyes contain very little melanin, and in blue eyes, the shorter wavelengths of light - such as blue - are scattered more effectively than longer wavelengths like red or yellow."
Dr Beaver added: "Due to the low concentration of melanin, less light is absorbed, allowing the scattered blue light to dominate what we perceive."
She said the melanin levels also come into play for green and hazel eyes, too.
"Green eyes, on the other hand, are rare because they are the result of a genetic quirk that lowers levels of melanin - but not as low as in blue eyes," the scientist explained.
"Hazel eyes are even more complex - as uneven melanin distribution in the iris creates a 'mosaic' of colour that can shift depending on the light."
In more recent discoveries, it was found that several different genes are responsible for eye colour.
"This explains why children in the same family can have dramatically different eye colours, and why two blue-eyed parents can sometimes have a child with green or even light brown eyes," Dr Beaver noted.
Eye colour can also change as a child grows, as melanin builds up as they age, so the blue eyes as a baby may change to green or brown.
As an adult, there is only a slight difference in the appearance of the colour based on the clothes you are wearing or the light.
According to research, blue is the most common eye colour in the UK, with approximately 48 percent of people having it.
Meanwhile, brown eyes are said to be the most common eye colour in the world.
Jen Thomas