About 8% of boys have problems distinguishing certain parts of the spectrum. This is also known as red/green color perception deficiency.
In the eye there are three
different light sensitive cells. There are cells sensitive to low frequencies
or blue light, cells that are sensitive to the midrange frequencies or green
light, and finally cells that the sensitive to long frequencies or red light.
The ability to see the smallest change between different colors is hue discrimination. In children with red/green deficiency the hue discrimination curve is shifted slightly toward the higher frequencies.
Children with the more common Protanomaly can recognize most colors except the part of the spectrum that normally is seen as blue-green appears as greyish or indistinct. The complimentary, to blue-green, is red-violet also appear indistinct.
To children with Deuteranomaly there is no part of the spectrum that appears as gray, but the green part of the spectrum appear indistinct and close to gray.
Children with various degree of the common red/green co lour perception problems can in most cases improve their ability to distinguish most of the colors they have difficulty naming accurately. In the Magic eyes workshop will will check children's co lour perception and give advise in how to improve any deficiencies.
Note that some individuals have less than normal light sensitive cells in their retina so they can only see one co lour and variable brightness (Protanope and Deuteranopia). Consequently it is not possible to improve their co lour sensitivity.
People with normal color perception has thousands of color reference experiences that let them know how to label colors. They also know how colors look like under different light conditions. A person with color perception deficiency has fewer color references and therefore confuse some colors or have difficulty naming them appropriately.
Color perception can be trained
There are many examples of young men during World War II who was rejected by the armed forces because they failed the color perception test. After Vision training many of them passed the color test and served with distinction in the air force. Vision trainers such as Margaret Corbet in Los Angeles and Clara Hackett in Seattle provided Vision Training under the G.I. Bill of Rights during the 1940's.
