Doctor explains 'superpower' that 2% of world's population has - including big downside

When we were kids we probably all wished to have superpowers but it turns out that two per cent of the world's population might have one without realising.

Sadly, I'm not talking about the sort of things you see in the Marvel movies like moving things with your mind or swinging from the rooftops of New York like Spider-Man.

Incredibly, there are some folks out there who do have genuine superpowers, but that's more like one in a trillion, rather than being two per cent of the world's population.

The superpower which Dr. Stasha Gomina talks to Steven Bartlett about on his popular Diary of a CEO podcast is something you see every day and likely impacts some of your friends.

Some of the world's most well-known celebrities have it as well, with Ed Sheeran, Prince Harry and Lindsey Lohan all carrying the redhead gene.

Ed Sheeran might be one of the most famous redheads in the world (Earl Gibson III/Deadline via Getty Images)

That's right, being ginger is a superpower, and perhaps the only superpower that might get you bullied at school thanks to that one episode of Southpark.

Speaking during the podcast, the doctor explains: "Melanin is the pigment that humans have in their skin. That melanin is absorbing energy, it's there to protect you from over-exposure to sunlight and damaging effects on the DNA of your skin.

"The redhead gene usually comes with freckles, which means that there are only little parts of the skin that have melanin. The redhead gene came about in the far north Viking Scotland. Those places don't get much sunlight. That means it cleared out the blocker of the thing that collected that energy and allowed people who lived in very overcast environments to make Vitamin D."

Bartlett replied: "So redheads actually have a bit of a superpower when it comes to their relationship with the sun?"

Dr Gomina explained: "If you pick up all the Scotsmen, and you put them in Texas or Oklahoma, they're now in an environment with very high sun levels. It's very hot in the summer and they cannot tolerate that level of sun."

So while it might be a superpower if you're a redhead who lives in the UK, it's also a bit of a curse if you ever want to swap your climate for a nicer one. And considering the recent heatwaves that we have had in the UK, only made worse by our lack of air conditioning, then it can't have been fun for any gingers.

But still, the next time someone makes a comment about your hair, you can show them this article and tell them all about your special superpower, even if it does make holidays a little harder.