​Clarifying color blindness

If you’ve ever seen someone wearing clothes with clashing patterns, you may have also heard someone tease them for being “color blind.” But is that accurate? What is color blindness? Read on as we discuss this intriguing condition.

What is color blindness?

This condition isn’t actually blindness at all. Instead, it is more of a color deficiency, when your eye cannot distinguish between some colors.

The eye has two types of cells that detect light. Rods detect light and dark, while cones detect color. Cones detected red, green, and blue, and the brain uses input from them to perceive colors. Color blindness is caused by different problems with the cones. In some cases, the cone cells are absent. In other cases, they detect a different color than normal, and in some cases they don’t work at all.

The most common kind of color blindness is red-green. This means a person has difficulty differentiating between reds and greens. It also means more than simply mixing up the two colors. It means they have difficulty telling the difference between any color that has a shade of red or green in it. Red-green color blindness is split into two categories: deuteranopia and protanopia. A much rarer version is blue-yellow color blindness. In severe but rare cases, a person can’t see anything but shades of gray. In some cases, people can see colors normally in good light, but can’t in dim light.

This is often a genetic condition, in which the condition is passed down from the mother, who had first inherited it from her father. However, it can also be the result of a disease like diabetes or multiple sclerosis.

This condition affects one in every 12 men, but only 1 in every 200 women.

Those who are color blind normally are from birth, but it can also develop later in life. However, it can be a sign of a more serious condition, such as cataracts or Parkinson’s disease. People who experience significant changes in their color vision should make an appointment with an eye doctor.

A correct, early diagnosis is important for a child’s learning and development. It can be difficult to detect without a test because a child may identify an item as a certain color simply because they were taught that’s what color it’s supposed to be.

People who have gone for an eye exam are very likely familiar with the color blindness test. These are the cards with a series of different-sized dots in multiple colors. The dots are arranged in the shape of numbers on the card. In some cases, only people with normal vision can see the numbers, while in other cases only people who are color blind can see what’s on the card.

Anyone who is color blind will always be color blind. However, in the past some patients have worn x-chrome contact lenses, CEENTA Optometrist Michael Spicola, OD, said. This enhances color perception for people with the red-green version of the condition. Also, some web sites sell glasses that filter out some light from the visual spectrum to help “correct” the colors the eye perceives.

“Thankfully, with the advent of new technology, doctors have more options to help patients who are color deficient,” Dr. Spicola said.

This blog is for informational purposes only. For specific medical questions, please consult your physician. Dr. Spicola practices in our Huntersville office. To make an appointment with him or any of our eye doctors, call 704-295-3000. You can also schedule an appointment online or through myCEENTAchart.