Also known as color deficiency, color blindness is when you cant see colors as most other people do.
This condition, known as achromatopsia, is rare.
Color blindness tends to run in families and is inherited at birth.
Theres no cure for color blindness, but special glasses and corrective lenses can help.
Many people have such mild symptoms that they dont know they have a color deficiency.
The main symptom of color blindness is difficulty telling colors apart or making mistakes when identifying colors.
Many people are born with it, which makes it a congenital condition.
Color blindness is triggered by a total or partial lack of cones in the retina.
Cones are what detect the colors red, green, and blue.
Red-green color blindness can be diagnosed with a simple eye test.
Optometrists (eye doctors) often check children for color blindness as part of a routine vision screening.
Each will have a circle created by dots composed of two or more colors.
The optometrist will ask you what number you see.
People with red-green color blindness will have trouble seeing some of the numbers.
There is no cure for color blindness, but there are ways to manage it.
Most people with color blindness learn to adapt and live with the condition.
For many people, a color vision deficiency is a relatively minor inconvenience.
Some people go many years without even knowing that they see colors differently from how most people see them.
Teach your child the colors of common items.
This can provide a frame of reference for when other people are discussing colors in your childs presence.
Achromatopsia is rare it affects approximately 1 in 30,000 people worldwide.
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Research and Statistics: Who Has Color Blindness?
Blue-yellow color blindness affects men and women equally.
Fewer than 1 in 10,000 people worldwide have blue-yellow color blindness.
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The Latest Research
Researchers are experimenting with gene therapy totreat color blindness.
Each participant received an injection in one eye.
More research is needed, but the results are promising.
For example, a drug used totreat rheumatoid arthritiscalled hydroxychloroquine (Plaquenil) can increase your risk.
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