Can Brown-Eyed Parents Have a Blue-Eyed Child?

By Staff WriterLast Updated April 13, 2020

Two brown-eyed parents can have a blue-eyed child. The gene for blue eyes is recessive, so both parents can carry it without exhibiting blue eyes. If the child inherits the blue-eyed recessive gene from each parent, he has blue eyes.

Every child inherits a set of genetic material from each parent, and the genes work together to determine the child’s physical traits. According to About.com, if each parent has a blue-eyed gene and a brown-eyed gene, both parents have brown eyes because the brown-eyed gene is dominant. If each parent passes the blue-eyed gene to the child, the child has blue eyes. If the child inherits one blue-eyed and one brown-eyed gene or two brown-eyed genes, the child has brown eyes.