A new study by the University of Vermont shows that people with blue-colored or other light-tinted eyes such as green or gray could be more likely to develop alcohol dependence. New England researchers learned that European-Americans with light-colored irises are more likely to suffer from alcoholism than people with dark-colored peepers.
The study considered control factors including the participants' age, gender, and gene history. However, the results still showed that humans with blue eyes were more likely to become alcoholics.
Scientists evaluated a sample group of 1,265 White Americans. By cross-referencing over 10,000 genetic traits, they discovered a "statistically significant" link between genes that affect eye color, and the ones that influence a person becoming dependent on alcohol, according to News Quench. The DNA segments lined up on a particular chromosome.
Dawei Li was the lead author of the study. She referred to alcoholism and other substance abuse conditions as "complex disorders."
In Li's future research she will try to duplicate the same results by using a bigger sample size. It will verify if light-hued eyes are indeed a reliable signal of alcoholism.
If Vermont researchers can confirm the link between blue eyes and alcohol dependence, the medical condition could be better monitored in the future, according to Rapid News Network. It could produce improved diagnostic tools and types of treatments.
The Univ. of Vermont's research confirms results from a Georgia State University study in 2000. Researchers discovered that the light-eyed subjects significantly drank more alcohol than brown-eyed people did.
The findings of the new study were published in July's edition of the American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B.