You may have noticed that your newborn’s eyes look a dreamy shade of blue or gray — and you might be wondering if they’ll stay that way. The truth is, your baby’s eye color may be one of those fun little mysteries that unfolds slowly over time.
Whether those peepers stay light or darken as the months go by depends on the amount of melanin in her iris (the colored part of the eye). Melanin is the pigment that gives color to eyes, skin, and hair, and the amount is determined by the genes your baby has inherited.
It can take months or even years for the permanent color to appear. Until then, you get to enjoy the suspense — and maybe even place a few family bets on the final shade!
“I don’t want to speed up time, but I wish I could look into the future and know her eye color,” says What to Expect Community mom felftm about her baby. “I am just too curious and excited to see what they will be!”
When does a baby's eye color change?
The most dramatic eye color changes usually happen between 3 and 6 months, once your baby’s iris has built up enough pigment for you to start guessing their “forever” shade.
But the suspense doesn’t end there. Your little one’s eye color may keep evolving until her first birthday, and in some cases, you might still notice subtle changes — like blue eyes turning hazel, or hazel deepening into brown — up until about age 3 years.
“My baby’s eyes are still changing and she’s 1 year old,” says What to Expect Community mom GrowingLily2021.
Babies with darker complexions are more likely to be born with dark — usually brown — eyes, though the exact shade can deepen over the first year. Fair-skinned babies are often born with blue or gray eyes, which may shift multiple times before their first birthday.
One thing you can count on: Once eyes turn brown, they’ll almost always stay brown. Dark eyes tend to remain dark.
“My first had grey blue eyes and by 1 year they were honey brown,” says What to Expect Community mom candlewood. “My second also had grey blue and right now at 4 months they’re still changing . . . I suspect they’ll go brown as well.”
What role do genetics play in baby's eye color?
The final hue of those pretty peepers depends on a roll of the genetic dice. Scientists know that multiple genes are involved, but the exact combinations can be unpredictable.
Here are a few probabilities if your baby is born with blue or gray eyes:
- If both parents have brown eyes, but one had a blue-eyed parent, then there’s a slight chance your little one's eyes will stay blue.
- If one parent has blue eyes and the other brown, your baby has a 50-50 chance of ending up with blue eyes.
- If both parents have blue eyes, then it’s very likely that your baby's eyes will stay blue.
Rare exception: Let your pediatrician know right away if your child has one brown eye and one blue eye. It could be linked to a rare genetic condition called Waardenburg syndrome, which can cause hearing loss.
What role does melanin play in baby’s eye color?
Melanin is the pigment that gives skin, hair, and eyes their color. Babies don’t start producing much melanin in the iris until after birth, when light exposure kicks things into gear.
The more melanin your baby has inherited, the darker the shade. Just a smidgen of melanin and your baby will have blue eyes. Add some more and you get green, gray or hazel. And a lot of melanin will result in brown or black eyes.
Eye color is just one of the many magical ways your baby will grow and change. Whether those tiny peepers settle on blue, green, hazel or brown, the color they land on will be uniquely theirs — and absolutely perfect to you.
“It’s so fun trying to guess what eye color our babies will have,” says What to Expect Community mom Melon1909. “Can’t believe it takes so long to get the final color.”
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