What is Color Deficiency?

What is Color Vision Deficiency?

Have you ever heard of people that are colorblind and wonder what that is like to not see colors? Well, it is very rare that an individual is completely color blind, most of the time they are color deficient.

Color Vision Deficiency is a visual condition that causes the inability to distinguish between certain shades of color. In some severe cases it causes people to not be able to see colors at all.

The colors that are difficult to differentiate between are:

– Certain shades of red and green or

– Blue and yellow

The red-green deficiency is more common than blue-yellow. It doesn’t mean that individuals with this deficiency cannot see these colors at all; it just means they have a difficult time correctly identifying them.

Depending on the cause, (injury, illness, or inherited) the severity can range from mild to severe.

What is The Cause of Color Vision Deficiency?

As stated above, injury, illness, and genetics are all factors that can lead to color vision deficiency. Genetics is the most predominant cause, but the following is a list of other common causes:

– Certain Medications

– Aging

– Diabetes

– Glaucoma

– Chemical Exposure

– Alzheimer’s Disease

– Parkinson’s Disease

– Chronic Alcoholism

How is Color Vision Deficiency Treated?

Unfortunately, there is no cure for inherited color deficiency. However, if the cause of your color deficiency is because of an illness or injury, then you may be able to improve your vision.

In some cases, wearing a red tinted contact in one eye or wearing special tinted glasses can improve this deficiency.

If you have more questions about Color Vision Deficiency, give the Provo Eye Doctors at Utah Valley Eye a call today.