Colorblindness occurs when one or more types of cone cells in the retina don’t function properly. The most common forms are:
- Red-green colorblindness (deuteranomaly or protanomaly) – difficulty distinguishing between red and green
- Blue-yellow colorblindness (tritanomaly) – rare condition affecting blue-yellow perception
- Complete colorblindness (achromatopsia) – extremely rare, seeing only in grayscale
Colorblindness is typically genetic and affects about 8% of males and 0.5% of females. The condition occurs more frequently in males because the genes responsible for the most common types are carried on the X chromosome. While there’s no cure, special glasses and digital tools can help enhance color discrimination for some individuals.