Color blindness typically refers to a person’s inability to see certain colors or perceive the depth or richness of their shades. Color blindness is most often a congenital disorder that can either be a genetic or hereditary problem. The affected person may experience a disruption in his color perception towards a few colors, red and green being the most common among people (especially men). In some rare cases, this disruption can occur for all kinds of colors, limiting the view to a greyscale.
The Science Behind Color Blindness
You might be surprised to know that objects around us don’t have any colors of their own! The trick through which we interpret different colors is the reflection of light coming from these objects in varying wavelengths. As this reflected light falls on the retina, the color-detecting molecules or photo pigments there are activated, which helps the brain perceive how much of red, green, blue and so on an object is.
Color blindness occurs when one or more kinds of photo pigments in the retina are missing or are not functioning properly. This causes overlap between the wavelengths of the problem colors in the photo receptors, causing the brain to confuse those colors. Most cases of color vision deficiency involve blindness towards red and green and their varying shades.
How Helpful Can Color Blindness-Correcting Glasses Be?
Color vision deficiency currently has no cure. However, people with more common color-blindness disorders can use color-correcting glasses, EnChroma being the most popular choice today. These are specially designed to control the light falling on the retina. The glasses are made of special minerals that possess a unique ability to absorb, block and filter out some of the wavelengths of problem colors. This means the remaining light wavelength that does pass through the glass doesn’t overlap much, helping the photo receptors give the brain a much clearer signal about the kind and shade of color.
However, the results of using color-correcting glasses vary widely among people. If there is an absolute deficiency of certain photo receptors, say the ones detecting red and green, then the color-correcting glasses will not be helpful.
Also, the glasses can only change the color perception or enhance the color distinction in people who wear them. In no sense can these glasses be an equivalent of natural color vision and their experience varies from one person to another.
Buying Your First Color-Correcting Glasses? Here Is What You Should Know
Since color-correcting glasses primarily restrict the amount of light entering the eye, they are not suitable to be worn after dusk. This light control feature can also prove to be troublesome for people having other eye conditions such as cataracts or macular degeneration. It is also recommended to avoid using color-correcting glasses when driving as their strong color-enhancement effect can result in visual distractions and other side effects, threatening your safety when driving. Since your glasses are going to be an expensive purchase, it is a good idea to ensure that they provide the value and benefits you seek!
Find Out if Color-Correcting Glasses Are Right For You
If you are interested in learning more about whether color blindness-correcting lenses are right for you, Eye Care of Delaware is ready to help! You can contact us online today or call us at (302) 454-8800 to schedule an appointment.
