Most of us know that colour blindness isn’t true blindness. Colour blindness refers to the inability to distinguish between certain colours and it doesn’t mean that someone can’t see any colour, only that they have difficulty discerning between certain colours. Men are more likely to be colour blind than others.
Normal Colour Perception
Most of us have red, blue and green colour receptors in our eyes in addition to black and white receptors. A person is colour blind when they are missing one or more of the colour receptors. Usually, a person will be missing red or green colour receptors, but sometimes they are missing both.
Males More Prone to Colour Blindness
Colour blindness is very rare in females but studies suggest that as much as ten percent of the male population have some form of colour blindness. Some men are also prone to a very rare form of colour blindness, yellow-blue colour blindness. If a person lacked all three colour receptors, they would only see in black and white. Although possible, this type of colour blindness is not very common.
Causes of Colour Blindness
Roughly eight percent of the male population are born with colour blindness. Hereditary colour blindness is often linked to the X chromosome, which means that a mother has passed on the defect to her son. Those born with the condition will usually not see any changes over time.
Sometimes colour blindness is the result of a disease within the optic nerve or retina. People with acquired colour blindness or colour perception problems resulting from illness or injury gradually see increasingly worse symptoms over time.
Signs and Symptoms
There are several different types of colour blindness. Signs and symptoms may include:
- Difficulty distinguishing between various shades of green and red or, less often, blues and greens
- Reduced or blurry vision at times, usually resulting from illness or injury
- Seeing objects in shades of gray (least common sign)
- Nystagmus (rapid involuntary movements of the eyes)
Diagnosis and Treatment
Your eye doctor can help you determine whether or not you have colour blindness by using coloured eye charts. Unfortunately, there is no treatment for the condition but most people have mild forms of the condition.
Coping With Colour Blindness
You can learn to adapt to colour blindness and how to associate proper colours with certain objects. Most people learn ways of correctly identifying colours but may still have difficulty in unfamiliar or new situations.
If you have concerns, consult your eye care professional who can determine the extent or severity of your problem and discover a cause and remedy, if appropriate. Sometimes, this may simply involve developing a system in your home or place of work to help you cope. For the most part, people who are colour blind lead very normal lives.
