Iris Color & Pigmentation - Manifestation of Elements & Compounds

The human iris can be seen in a number of various colors, although there are only two basic iris colors, blue and brown.

It seems more than ever, through so much inter-marriage of races in the world that we are likely to see a genetic mix of colors. There are many instances where drug and toxic settlements in the body, can make the Iris color appear different from it's basic predominant color. It is difficult to determine what type of inorganic drug has settled in a specific weak tissue because so many drugs and chemicals are being used in our world today compared to 100 years ago.

The signs of certain drugs as quinine, iron, and coal tar products have been noticed approximately two months after administration, but other metallic poisons, such as mercury, lead or plumbum, usually take up to a year to be demonstrated in the iris. These drug signs that show in the iris indicate the amounts of the drug the system has failed to eliminate, not the quantities of the drug being used.

Central Heterochromia

A highly pigmented area that appears around the pupil and spreads outwards towards the edge of the iris. This type of pigment may not be relevant to iris analysis unless it spills over the collarette thus indicating candida overgrowth syndrome. Conditions of gastric sub-acidity and hypochlorhydria may also be indicated. A common sign found in the biliary constitution.

Sectoral Heterochromia

A term given to an iris when part of the iris is genetically pigmented, usually in one section. This is quite rare and has no significant meaning as of yet.

Here are how drugs, compounds and elements manifest in the IRIS

Brown Pigment in the iris indicates a liver/pancreas problem.

Brown (Tar) Pigment is usually seen in diabetes. This pigment is as a result of either the liver not sufficiently detoxifying or inadequate production of trypsinogen (which breaks down protein) by the pancreas.

Brown/Red Pigment in the iris indicates a pancreas problem.

Fuscin Pigments are yellow brown pigments over the liver/gall bladder area and the pancreatic head. This type of pigment usually indicates dysfunction of the gall bladder. Fuscins are substances which develop during the break down of hemoglobin and its derivatives in the liver.

Lattice Pigment a net structure with a very large mesh and irregular fringe edge. It is black/brown in colour and occurs rarely. It is very large and often covers a part of the iris from the collarette to the ciliary edge. The lattice pigment indicates a disposition to diabetes, chronic liver disease and formation of tumors.

Orange/Yellow Pigment inside the collarette indicates a problem with protein metabolism and shows putrefaction of protein. When seen outside the collarette kidney malfunction is indicated.

Pancreas Pigments are dark brown spots of pigment which seem to 'float' on top of the iris structure. Their position is not significant.

Pigment Spots are dark brown spots appearing at random throughout the iris. These indicate liver and pancreas malfunction. High or low blood sugar conditions should be suspected.

Pink/Yellow Pigment in the iris outside the collarette indicates a kidney problem.

Red/Yellow Pigment in the iris indicates a pancreas problem.

Rufin Pigments are red pigments and when seen in the liver zone with vascularized liver transversal may indicate carcinoma of the liver.

Yellow/Pink Pigment in the iris outside the collarette indicates a kidney problem.

Yellow Pigment associated with the kidneys and digestion and usually develop in the lymphatic iris type or by a high intake of meat products. Yellow pigment may develop in the kidney zone or the intestinal zone.

Yellow/Orange Pigment in the iris inside the collarette indicates a problem with protein metabolism.

Black Hair Pigment clearly seen as a pigment spot with black hair on the surface of the iris. This sign appears mostly in the middle or peripheral part of the ciliary zone. The black hair pigment may indicate cancer of glandular organs.

Black Pigment when seen in isolation is said to indicate cancer of the corresponding zone.

Candida Overgrowth Syndrome Pigment seen in the iris as a dull brown pigment spreading from the pupil and spilling over the collarette producing a central heterochromia. This indicates abnormal overgrowth of candida albicans.

It seems that people with a brown eye have a family history that goes back to the more southern climates, while blue eyes have a history of a family background in the northern climates.

It is been noted that brown eyed people seem more subject too glandular and blood related disorders while blue eyes seem to be subject too lymphatic, catarrhal and acidic disorders.

Other localized and specific pigmentations indicates reduced functional organ capabilities or increased susceptibility to stress. Some examples are:

Straw Yellow - Kidney

Orange - Pancreas & Liver

Fluorescent Orange - Gallbladder, Pancreas and Liver

Brown (light, medium, dark, reddish) - Liver

Black/Tar - Pre-cancerous & liver

Why there is a need to Change the Iris Color?

The range of available cosmetic lenses today is extensive. Patients can now change their eye color as often as their wardrobe or mask ocular disfigurement without calling attention to their eyes.

There are three distinct types of colored lenses: enhancers, opaque lenses, and light-filtering tints. These lenses are available in a variety of prescription types including plano (lenses without vision correction), spherical and toric lenses. Even if you intend to purchase plano lenses, you will still need a current contact lens prescription and fitting. Color contacts are also available in all wearing schedules and replacement schedules.

Light-Filtering Tints

These contacts represent the latest development in color contact lens technology. Light-filtering lenses are primarily designed for enhancing sports performance and for other recreational uses.



They are tinted in a manner that enhances certain colors (such as the yellow of a tennis ball) while muting other extraneous or distracting colors. Because of this, an object like a tennis ball is viewed in greater contrast with respect to the background and is therefore more easily focused upon.

Enhancement Tints

While some handling tints may affect the patient's eye color slightly, cosmetic or enhancer tints are required to make a purposeful change in someone's iris color. These tints are translucent and blend with the underlying iris color to achieve an enhanced color effect when worn.

Since these lenses are generally created with a light dye uniformly applied on the front surface, dark-color irises do not blend well with the lens color and typically eliminate the blending effect. Light blue and green eyes work best with enhancer tints; and aqua, blue, royal blue, and green are typically the most frequently chosen lens colors.

The real color enhancement obtained with these lenses is a combination of the actual lens color, shade, and intensity of the tint; and specific lighting conditions. Hence, an aqua lens from one manufacturer may not look the same as an aqua lens from another, and the color may vary depending on to the lighting conditions.

Opaque Tints

Opaque tints incorporate opaque dyes throughout the lens material and result in a color change that is generally independent of the underlying iris color. They can make brown eyes appear blue and even mask corneal scars. However, opaque tints have been reported to reduce peripheral vision, especially when decentered from the patient's line of sight.

Plano Color Contacts

It started as a fad; now it's 30% of cosmetic contact lens sales. After contact lens companies discovered there was a demand for eye color change among people who don't need vision correction, they started making more sophisticated products to capitalize on this growing market. First it was disposable contacts, then opaques, then patterns.

Those who are most intrigued about wearing plano contacts fall into the teenage to young adult categories, those whose appearance often takes the form of a bold statement. This represents a lowering in age for planos?the market previously had been young adults and older.

Basic Structure of the Human Eye

First, I think it is important to briefly review some of the relevant anatomy of the human eye.. The cornea is located at the front of the eye and is the transparent window through which light first passes before traveling through an opening called the pupil.

The iris appears as the colored part of the eye and is responsible for regulating the size of the pupil, which in turn influences the amount of light that enters the eye. Finally, at the back of the eye lies the retina, a multilayered structure consisting of a diverse array of cell types, which receives visual stimuli from the environment and transmits this information to the brain, via the optic nerve for further processing.

The iris

The iris (plural: irides) gets its name from Iris, the Greek goddess of the rainbow and messenger of the gods. Structurally, the iris contains two different layers. The innermost layer (closest to the back of the eye) is called the iris pigment epithelium, or IPE for short.

The cells of this layer appear as tiny cubes and are stacked in a compact and orderly arrangement, much like bricks. Furthermore, as the name suggests, these cells appear pigmented. The top layer is referred to as the iris stroma, which consists of less orderly and more loosely arranged cells.

There are several different cell types present in the stroma, including a specialized population of pigmented cells called melanocytes. Melanocytes are cells that synthesize pigment (referred to as melanin) and originate from an embryonic structure called the neural crest.

Structural elements that determine iridial color:

There are three main factors relating to iridial structure that may influence its color:

(1) the pigment in the IPE

(2) the pigment content of the iris stroma

(3) the cellular density of the iris stroma.

From the paragraph above, we know that there are two regions in the iris that contain pigment, or melanin: one is in the IPE, which I have already eluded to, and the other is in the iris stroma. For the most part, the amount and distribution of melanin in the IPE is similar in irides of different colors. Therefore, it is unlikely that the IPE itself is a major determinant of iris color.

However, it seems that the melanocytes in the iris stroma do play a role. These pigmented cells store their melanin in specialized organelles called melanosomes. It is currently held that much of the variation in iris color can be attributed to variation in the number and size of melanosomes within these melanocytes.

In contrast, it seems that the actual number of melanocytes remains relatively constant between irides of different colors. Thus, the amount and distribution of melanin contained within the melanocytes themselves is thought to be a major determinant of eye color. The cellular density of the iris stroma plays a relatively minor role in iridial color.

Light of longer wavelengths (red light, for example) readily penetrates the iris and is absorbed. However, some shorter wavelengths, primarily blue light, is reflected back and scattered by the iris stroma. This means that irides with little or no pigment in the iris stroma appear blue due to the reflection and scattering of blue light.

Blue, Green and Brown

So, how do these various structural elements translate into the different iridial colors that we see? Well, we have already talked a little about what causes blue eyes.

Essentially, these individuals have very few melanosomes in the iris stromal melanocytes, and the resulting blue color is due to light reflection and scattering. I should emphasize that blue-eyed individuals do not lack all pigment in their eyes-they have normal melanin content in the IPE but relatively little melanin in the iris stroma. (NOTE: Individuals who are completely deficient in melanin have red eyes).

This condition is called albinism and is due to a genetic mutation in one of the enzymes responsible for the synthesis of melanin. The eyes appear red due to the "unmasking" of the blood contained in the vessels of the eye in the absence of melanin.)

Brown irides result from a high melanin content in the iris stroma-that is, a large number of melanosomes contained within the melanocytes. Green or hazel irides are the product of a moderate amount of melanosomes. Therefore, in a basic sense, there is a spectrum of iridial color ranging from blue to green to brown that results from a continuum of increasing melanosome number.

Changing eye color

Under normal physiological conditions, exactly what might cause gradual changes in eye color beyond adolescence is not known.

Presumably, environmental and/or genetic factors might interact with the cells in the iris, causing an increase or decrease in the degradation of melanin within the stromal melanocytes, and perhaps a change in the number and/or size of these melanocytes.

It is possible that stress may impact this process, but there is no evidence to support that claim per se. I came across one interesting observation that may be relevant here. A medication called latanoprost causes an increase in iris pigment in some patients.

This drug is a prostaglandin analogue, which means that it mimics this particular hormone in the body. Exactly how it does this isn't clear. But, this may provide some evidence that various hormones in the body can alter iridial pigmentation over time.