Are you worried your child may be color blind? It’s often difficult to know whether kids have any visual impairments, especially color vision deficiency, as it’s easy to hide and not widely talked about. However, color blindness is all too common; if you have a son, he will have a one in 12 chance of being color blind! Besides taking your child for a children’s eye exam, there are a few signs that you can look out for that may spot color blindness. Here’s what you should look out for:
Misidentifying colors
As children develop at different rates, it’s hard to tell when you should be worrying about your child’s misidentification of colors. It’s believed that children start to see colors at the age of 5 months old but don’t learn to vocalize this until the ages of 3-5. If your child gets to this age range and is still misidentifying their colors, especially reds, greens, and blues, you should take them for a free children’s eye exam to settle your worries. Another indicator of colorblindness is a lack of interest in color-related games, such as “what color is this”; if your child seems disinterested in playing color-specific games, it could be because they can’t see certain colors.
Eye pain
Some children can develop eye strain and headaches due to colorblindness. For example, mixing reds and greens can be a struggle for those who have protanopia or deuteranopia color blindness, and so they strain their eyes which leads to headaches; things like red objects or writing on a green background will typically cause straining. Although not a dead-set symptom of colorblindness, it is something to look out for. If your child is suffering from eye strain or an unusual amount of headaches, it’s strongly advised that you book in for a children’s eye test – some opticians offer free children’s eye exams, too.
Using the wrong colors
Whether you already suspect your child is colorblind or you just want to test their ability without taking them to the opticians for a children’s eye test, using coloring books and coloring sheets can be a fun and easy option. Look for out-of-the-ordinary color selections, like painting leaves red instead of green or coloring the sky in purple rather than blue. It’s better to let your child use a coloring book or sheet than to quiz them on the color of the sky and grass yourself, as children are surprisingly good at guessing their way through these questions. Children learn pretty early on in school the answers to these questions, so even if they can’t see the color blue, they’ll still know that it’s the sky’s color.
If you’re still concerned about your child’s vision, it’s best to get everything checked over by a professional. At Vizavance, we provide free children’s eye exams in Oklahoma using only the best opticians so that you can have peace of mind. Call today to find out more.
