What are color vision deficiencies?

Color vision deficiencies are when people see colors a little differently than most others.

Imagine you have a box of crayons, and some of them look just like others, even though they’re not the same color. That’s kind of what happens to people with color vision deficiencies. They might mix up reds and greens or blues and yellows, depending on which type of deficiency they have.

Sometimes, it's as if they're looking at everything through a special filter, like when you put a green glass over your eye. That makes some colors look different or harder to tell apart. This is especially true for people who can’t see red and green clearly; they might see a red apple as brown or gray.

Most people with color vision deficiencies don’t even know it at first, until maybe they’re coloring a picture and notice that their blue looks like purple to someone else. But it doesn’t stop them from playing, drawing, or enjoying the world around them. In fact, many famous artists had color vision differences and still created amazing art!