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AFP - Getty Images file
An undated photo of Elizabeth Taylor highlights her lovely eyes -- made even lovelier thanks to an extra row of eyelashes caused by a rare disorder.
It's hard to imagine that some of the first words heard by the parents of Elizabeth Taylor, the actress considered the world's most beautiful woman in her heyday, was that their newborn daughter had a mutation.
In this case, the mutation that Taylor had -- a double row of eyelashes -- only enhanced her exquisite face and stunning blue-violet eyes. Upon hearing the diagnosis, her mother reportedly thought, "Well, now that doesn't sound so terrible at all," according to the biography "Elizabeth" by J. Randy Taraborrelli.
And while a second row of eyelashes forming a full fringe around those captivating peepers may sound like a girl's best friend and a make-up artist's dream come true, that's not always the case. Taylor's twin-set of lashes are thought to be the result of a genetic mutation at the FOXC2 gene. (Funny that a woman most men would describe as "foxy" was possibly affected by the FOXC2 gene!)
An extra row of eyelashes is known medically as distichiasis (pronounced dis-tic-key-i-asis) and it's a rare disorder. Eye specialists refer to it as an "accessory row" of eyelashes.
Eyelashes normally grow on the outside edge of the eyelid and they may not always grow in one straight row, explains Dr. Aaron Fay, an ophthalmic plastic surgeon at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary in Boston. "What happens in distichiasis is that a hair grows where there is supposed to be an oil gland on what's considered the wet part of the eyelid."
When hairs grow on the thin ledge of skin nearer to the eye, the lash can rub against the eyeball, creating three potential problems, says Fay. It can cause eye irritation as well as more frequent tearing in the eye, and it may even break down the surface cells on the eye and reduce vision.
Sometimes these problems can be easily treated with eyedrops or an ointment, Fay explains. For some people, the answer may be wearing contact lenses, which can protect the surface of the eye, since the extra lashes will rub the lens rather than the eye itself.
If those strategies don't do the trick, other treatments include pulling out the hair with a tweezer (don't try this at home), electrolysis, or a freezing procedure that destroys the hair follicles.
It's hard to know whether Taylor had any eye problems from her lush lashes, but Fay says the hair on the accessory row is typically sparser and less robust than normal eyelashes. And it's more common to have the second row on the lower eyelid, but they could also grow on the upper lid.
Distichiasis can occur in men and women alike -- even those who aren't movie stars. Sometimes it occurs at birth as it did for Taylor. But it can also happen in older age.
And you might not be able to see it by looking closely in the mirror. A specialized microscope may be needed to detect another row.
Distichiasis is much rarer than other eyelid abnormalities, says Fay. A condition known as trichiasis is much more common, in which the eyelash grows toward the eye rather than an outward direction.
How about you, readers? Know anyone with some of these other eyelash oddities: no eyelashes, white eyelashes, extra-long lashes, or unusually curly lashes?
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OMG! My son has this, and I just thought it weird, but neat. The ladies certainly loved his eyes, but when he was a little guy, he found their attentions scary, and cut his eyelashes off! LOL, now he uses those lashes to his advantage with the ladies.
My uncle's lashes were so long they had to be trimmed or they would touch his glasses. My sons have very long and thick lashes - all beautiful shades of blue eyes, too. I don't think, from some of the pictures I've seen of Elizabeth Taylor, her eye color is that unusual from others with beautiful blue eyes. Our family has many shades running from light, almost turquoise blue to very dark blue, even gray-blue, green-blue and blue-green. Pretty eyes are pretty eyes - no matter what the shade or color.
Your family may be blessed with lashes, but I did see Liz in person, and her violet eyes are absolutely stunning, 'hands down'!
That's funny MG, my lashes are so long, they touch my glasses, but I won't cut them, because I'm a woman, and I hate wearing mascara, so I just accomodate by wearing the glasses a bit further down my nose. I pick styles that look okay that way. I don't have blue or violet eyes though, just brown.
My lashes bump my glasses, too and it's a real nuisance. Makes them fall out quicker. Forget mascara, smudges up the lenses--how much does mascara cost vs. $250 per lens! Would have prefered violet eyes, mine are Army green.
Professor X knew her by another name.
Never found this woman to be attractive, much less, sexy. I guess its all the olden people who see this lady as being hot and worthy of media attention.
Hey Truthseeker101. Let us know when you've found the truth.
Truthseeker 201
Well, we don't all find the same type attractive.
I think Liz Taylor was very pretty when she was young, but not as much as Audrey Hepburn was.
There is a general consensus that Elizabeth Taylor was one of the most beautiful women of her day.
Today's actresses are sometimes unique, but few show natural beauty, many times they are a marketed package.
She's from a different generation than yours, but when you get older you will probably remember
the actors, actresses, and singing groups you liked when you were growing up.
We tend to relate memories of our own with the famous people of the past !
It's a given !
Sign me,
70 and old fashion
Truthseeker-
I shutter to imagine the looks of you.
Your vision of beauty is a disgrace.
You need glasses and a netflix subscription. In her day she was the stuff.
TruthSeeker101, it is the general consensus that Elizabeth Taylor is a natural beauty. Her face shows the definition of loveliness and kindness. She is the epitome of beauty. Your definition of beauty must surely be distorted or unnatural. Perhaps you need glasses to see her awesome gorgeous face and violet eyes. It doesn't matter how old or young a person is, beauty is beauty, even little kids can see beauty and it is not generational. Even 20 year old people think she is/was beautiful. Her beauty transcends time. As if you didn't know, I am a big fan of Elizabeth Taylor. May she rest in peace. Don't talk ill of the dead either.
I have this condition. o.o It does case a lot of eye irritation.
That's certainly nicer than my mutation, which is invisible to the naked eye. From my mom's side, we get extra-long roots on our teeth (or hooked roots if there isn't enough room in the jaw) & an extra nerve. This means we need more complex dental care- more pain relievers, & much more difficult root canals. It can suck, but we can hang onto our teeth longer than usual, if we're careful.
When I did volunteer makeup for weddings, plays & photo shoots, I encountered a woman with partial albinism. It was like a line was drawn on the outer 1/2 of her right eyebrow & lashes.
Was mickey roone at the funeral
I too have this "mutation" and so did my late husband. You should see our daughter's blue eyes and long, thick lashes. She has never had to use mascara. I have always loved the color of Liz Taylor's eyes.
I inhertited a diffferent but similar mutation. Only one row of lashes, but instead of one lash coming out of each tiny lash hole, there are two or three. Passed it on to all my kids, and their biology teacher was fascinated!
I don't any people, but i grew up on a farm and we had a lot of sheep who had this disorder. For most of them, we had to do a little surgery on them, cutting an oval piece of eyelid out and sewing the edges together. that got the lashes to roll out. Those sheep did have pretty eyelashes, but none of them looked like Mrs. Taylor.
Nina-I mever thought of sheeps' eyelashes, but when I'd get to stay on my uncle's farm (my idea of heaven!) I always thought the horses and the cows had the most beautiful lashes :)
TruthSeeker101:
It's not a generational thing -- the woman was just gorgeous. Those eyes, those lips, that figure! I'm 38, and I find the "beautiful" women of today to be cookie-cutter copies of each other, with very few exceptions. Most all of them are disgustingly thin with fake lips and breasts.
Who wants to look at a surgically enhanced "woman" with no curves when you can look at women like Elizabeth Taylor and see what a real woman looks like? Watch A Place in the Sun or Some Like it Hot if you don't believe me. Yowza!
"Some Like It Hot" was Marilyn Monroe, not La Liz (her old tabloid nickname). Two very beautiful, all natural (at least, so far as we will ever know) women.
I had ingrowing eyelashes that were turned outside by minor surgery on the corners of my eyes, which by the way pulled wrinkles under my eyes tighter and made me look younger. This procedure was done when I was 69 and I'm now 78. Jerry G.
I'd like to know something about that ring with the blue stone!
This is news? I am totally disgusted.
And we care.....why? Let the poor woman lie in peace. Why must we dissect people...their lives,...their mutations? Leave the poor woman alone. Who cares? This is shocking to me...
My daughter, now 2, has extra long eyelashes. About double the average lenght. It's the first thing people notice when they see her. She had to get eyeglasses about 4 months ago and it took some adjustment for her. Her eyelashes hit the lenses of the glassess and curl up. We thought they were only long when she was born and that she'd grow into them, which hasn't been the case, they just have been growing in proportion with her.
Have you thought of curling her lashes before she puts on her glasses? This may help prevent them from hitting the lenses so much. I do hope she appreciates them, as many women would pay good money to have lashes like that!
Elizabeth Taylor was a stunning woman. She had it all. When she walked in a room full of people, no one else was noticed but her. THAT is beauty folks.
Even though she was ill, I still can't believe she's gone. She was a TRUE legend.
I have this eye condition, very uncomfortable.
When I was younger (30's) my eye doctor told me to use an eyelash curler because my lashes were so long they would hit my eyeglass lenses. I also had what he called "true green" eyes and after an eye injury when I was trying to wear contact lenses, he told me to forget about the contacts. My eyes were not good candidates for contact lenses and why take the chance on injuring my eyes permanently. Now that I'm in my late 60's, I wish my lashes were that long again and some of them have turned white. I have my annual eye exam next month and I'm sure I'll here what he thinks about it.
Even in my 60's, though, I still get compliments on my eyes so I'm not going to complain.
The thing about Taylor's beauty was that it was natural, no enhancment of any kind was needed. She had the perfect symetrical features the perfect proportions to her face, she was the standard for beauty for decades...........she looked almost the same at 7 as she did at 47.........yes she was celebrated as the most beautiful woman ever. Nowadays of course beauty is seen as stick thin, fake boobs, no hips, gaunt face, huge man made lips and fake hair. No contest.
Wow. I don't know if I have this, per se, but people have asked me if I wear fake lashes because my lashes are so thick and long. Luckily I don't need glasses, but it becomes a bit of an issue with buying sunglasses; they have to sit far enough out that my lashes don't brush them, especially since I'm very light-sensitive (green eyes) and HAVE to wear shades while outdoors, and the lash-thing can drive you batty after a while.
Green eyes are beautiful. Don't be silly. I know someone who had eyes the color of the Carribean, almost translucent and stunning. You could see through them just like you can see the fish and the bottom of hte Carribean. It was a man. I've seen violet, I've seen ultra blue, green blue, but never have I seen eyes like that. It was hard to take your eyes off his eyes! lol
He had very long lashes as well.
I adored Marilyn, but she had her nose narrowed before she became Marilyn, about the same time she went platinum blonde. But what a body! Fabulous, lovely, gentile. Both she and Elizabeth were stars before they were born.
You may think this condition of extra rows of eyelashes is rare, when in fact, it is not. In the Middle East, there are many locals that share this condition, giving them beautiful eyes and eyelashes. I've even seen three rows of eyelashes that are amazing!! Genetic mutation.....yes, I believe that it is due to the great numbers of mutations in this region from inter-marrying.
No one ever gives any love to the brown eyes. :(