What Is A color Blind Test? Find Out if You Need One

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A person’s ability to see, experience, and interact with the world around them is one of the most important parts of the human experience. To be able to see the wonders of the world, enjoy nature and make memories is what defines us.

In this pursuit sometimes, we get disadvantaged by conditions that may not be painful or harmful but can be unnerving and inconvenient while moving through daily life. Color blindness is one such condition, which can cause a person to grow apart from their immediate environment as they are unable to experience colors the same way a person with normal vision would.


If you have ever felt a disconnect with the way your peers and friends describe color or have had trouble with regular activities like checking the ripeness of fruits, telling the difference between two colors, getting sunburnt and not noticing it, you might want to go for a color blind test.

While it’s not harmful if it occurs independently of any underlying conditions, it can be inconvenient while navigating life and different activities daily.

While not entirely treatable, color blindness can be reduced to a certain extent. To find out how a Online Color Blind Test works and if you need one, let us take a closer look at some basics.


Color Blindness: The Basics

Color blindness can be defined as a distinct inability to tell different colors apart, most commonly shades of red and green. More common in men than women, color blindness can be caused by a variety of factors. It can be a result of ageing, a reaction to a medication, an underlying eye condition, or chemical exposure. In most cases, however, it has been defined as a genetic condition, where people who carry the conditions are most likely to pass it down to their children.


The lack of color sensitivity in color blind people is a failure within the color photo-receptors or cones within the retina. Going for a color blind test can help determine if there indeed is a problem within the retina.

It is important to note that in some cases color blindness can be caused by an underlying eye condition that affects the optic nerve such as Glaucoma. In such a case, your color sensitivity may return once your underlying condition is duly treated.


Do You Need a Color Blind Test?

If you frequently find quite a difference between your color perceptions with those around you, you might want to go for a color blind test. If you have especially noticed a troubling inability to differentiate two colors from one another, a color vision test may be the answer to your perception anxieties. Keep an eye out for the following symptoms which might mean it’s time to schedule an appointment for a color blind test:


Bright Light Sensitivity


Headaches or Eyestrain when focussing on red on green backgrounds and vice-versa


Trouble focussing on colored pages


Difficulty telling shades of red and green apart


What Is a Color Blind Test?

A color blind test, unlike other tests, does not require any prior preparation on the patient’s end. The ophthalmologist will administer the test with the help of test cards. The cards contain a circular cluster of multi-colored dots, at the centre of these dots, are numbers or symbols which are also dots but in a different color.

This is called the Ishihara Test. If you can identify the contrasting colors and tell the doctor the number or symbol you see, you have normal color vision.


If there is difficulty in being able to see a number or symbol within the multi-colored dots, you might have color blindness. Next, the doctor will administer the color vision test alternating between the two eyes and ask about any perceived difference in color intensity between the two eyes. Once the color blind test is over, the doctor may diagnose any difficulty in color perception as any of the following:


Deuteranopia: Difficulty in identifying between shades of Red from Purple and Green from Purple


Deuteranomaly: Most common type, shades of Green and Yellow appear Red.


Protanopia: Difficulty in identifying between shades of Blue from Green and Red from Green


Tritanopia: Difficulty in identifying between shades of Yellow from Green and Blue from Green


Achromatopsia: Complete color blindness, vision only in shades of Grey


A color blind test is, therefore, imperative in helping you determine if you have any lapses in your color perception abilities. The test is simple and can even be done at home, and one can treat it to some extent with the help of filtered eyeglasses.

Titan Eye+ offers a range of eyeglasses that can be customized as per your prescription and design preferences, so head over to your nearest store for great prices and an endless range of trendy eyewear.

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