By Andy Furman
NKyTribune reporter
She’s got it – and you don’t. In fact, less than one-percent of people in the world have it. And if you don’t have it – well, you’re out of luck, because you must be born with it.
Diana Willen was – and, she has it.
It is– Sunflower Eyes.
Central heterochromia, aka The Sunflower Eye. It is when people have a shade of gold around the border of their pupil in the center of the iris, according to Willen – and the rest of their iris is another color.
“It’s genetic,” Willen told the Northern Kentucky Tribune. “My mother had it. And I have no problem at all with my eyes.”
Let’s hope not – she says one of her hobbies along with gardening, walking, and hiking is — reading.
“I read 94 books last year,” the Newport resident said. “Your eye color is determined by multiple combinations of genes that produce and distribute pigments. Some are conditions can affect your eye color as well. Some people are born with heterochromia, or different colored eye.”
It did not affect Willen one bit as she served as Director of Investment Operations for Fifth-Third Bank and remained in the banking business for some 41 years. The graduate of the University of Akron and Akron Law School, also serves as an attorney.
“When people notice my eyes,” she said, “they will usually say, ‘What pretty brown eyes you have.’ I say nothing, because they are hazel, green and gold.”
While some people are born with two colors in the same eye, or central heterochromia, due to genetic mutation affecting melanin production; others can develop it due to an injury or health condition.
Rather than have one distinct eye color, people with central heterochromia have a different color near the border of their pupils. A person with this condition may have a shade of gold around the border of their pupil in the center of their iris, with the rest of their iris another color.
It is usually harmless and does not require treatment. But it can sometimes be a symptom of an underlying health condition.
Central heterochromia describes the location of the pigment change in heterochromia, a term for having different eye colors.
And, of course, there is a story that goes with The Sunflower Eye. Eastern European pagans that they were witch eyes, Willen recalled. Many Native American cultures believed they were ghost eyes. They granted a person the ability to see into heaven and earth. Central heterochromia, or sunflower eyes, is a genetic anomaly.
In other cultures, it is believed to be a sign of heightened spiritual abilities, such as psychic intuition or clairvoyance, Willen said.
As for the sunflower itself, it is native to North America and was first grown as a crop by indigenous tribes over 4,500 years ago. Native Americans cultivated the sunflower from its original bushy, multi-headed type to produce a single-stemmed plant bearing a large flower.
And if you do not believe what it looks like — peek into Diana Willen’s eyes.