Colorblindness: What is it?

What is Colorblindness?

Why is the sky blue? Though seemingly a silly one - it is a question that often stumps kids and adults alike. Color is perceived by how the light reflects off of the object and hits your retina. The eye generally has cone cells that have the ability to discern different colors and shades. However, approximately 1 in 12 men and 1 in 200 women experience color in a different way from others. Color deficiencies are often genetically inherited from the mother or has been found to develop over time with age or diseases like diabetes. Color deficiency can categorized into three different types: red-green blindness, blue-yellow color blindness, and monochromacy. 

The 3 Types of Colorblindness

1. Red-Green Color Blindness

   1. Deuteranomaly: A mild form of colorblindness that is often regarded as the most common type of red-green color blindness and makes green look more red.

   2. Protanomaly: A mild form of colorblindness that makes red look more green and dull.

   3. Protanopia and Deuteranopia: unable to tell the difference between red and green at all

2. Blue-Yellow Color Blindness

   1. Tritanomaly: A less common form of colorblindness that makes it difficult to distinguish between blue and green, and between yellow and red

   2. Tritanopia: A less common form of colorblindness that makes it difficult to distinguish between blue and green, purple and red, and yellow and pink. It also makes color look duller and less sharp.

3. Complete Color Blindness: Otherwise known as monochromacy, it is an extremely rare form of color blindness where the person can not see colors at all.

Contact the Redondo Optometry Staff to answer your concerns and to schedule an eye exam, if needed.