Color Blindness - Carrollton,TX

M., I thought the same thing about my 2 year old son. So, I googled color blind tests and gave him one. They don't have to know any colors to take it. It's just like a whole bunch of green circles and then like a bunch of red or yellow circles that make up a particular shape. If he can see the shape, then he's not color blind. Hope that helps!

My son was over 3 before he could pick out his colors every time. Just keep reinforcing colors with him and he will probably be fine.

Does he have difficulty with particular colors? I think those who are color blind typically have trouble with reds and greens. I think it is pretty rare to see only shades of gray, but that does exist. I would seek your eye doctor's opinion and possibly see a specialist if needed.

Both of my sons are colorblind. While it is really too early to be sure with your son, it is great that you are aware of the possibility. In order for your son to be colorblind, your father has to be colorblind. That is usually how the genetics work. The father is colorblind and passes the gene to his daughters who then pass the genes on to their sons. Your son would have a 50% chance of being colorblind at that point. Enough of the biology...There are several websites you can visit to get some more information. I particularily like www.colorvisiontesting.com. It has several links that are really helpful. The earliest that your son can be tested by an eye doctor is about 5 years. There is really not a pediatric colorblind test that is used by doctors in this area. I wouldn't worry about it now, just keep an eye on things like his color choices when coloring and just journal it all in case you do need to go to the doctor. Feel free to email me if you have any other questions: ____@____.com.

I was worried that my son would be color blind because all the men in my family are (both grandfathers, father, and brother). When I asked the doctor about it, they said that they could not officially test him until he was 4. Well, by the time my son was four, he could really tell his colors, so I am no longer worried about it.

Hi
My son has a July birthday too (he is 6 now) and I had the same concerns when he was 2!! First of all it's too early to tell right now so I would not worry about it a whole lot. If he is still having trouble at 3 then talk to your ped. about it. When my son was 2 he could visually and orally tell numbers, shapes and alphabets but he would look at the neighbor dog and say "green dogie"! I spent a lot of time trying to teach him colors and he would only get it about 50% of the time and it was a gues.. he also would just not care and make up colors probably bc we stressed the correct one so much. So he would always say blue tree and red sky just to get a rise out of us...thinking back that's what I realize. Bc at 3 and 4 he got them right and it was not an issue but I actually called the doctor about it when he was 2. My older son never did this and also knew his colors and shapes and alphabets very early so it was a bit odd. However DS is now in first grade doing well and has no problems with colors or reading or anything so I think it was just a toddler phase!

i know you have already gotten a lot of responses but i just wanted to say that most people who are colorblind only get two colors mixed up. i have a friend who is red green color blind. (they all look like different shades of brown to him). except for christmas being a little boring it hasn't affected his life at all. your son is still young and i'm sure he'll get it figured out but if not it is still nothing to worry about.

I had this exact issue with my son and I really thought he might be color blind. I asked his physical therapist at the time and she decided to do a test and see.

She had color boxes with colored bears and asked him to match them up. He did it perfectly! Although he couldnt name the colors, he sure could see them!

Now at 4 1/2 he knows his colors, although sometimes he has to tell me two answers before he is correct. I think he just blurts something out sometimes before thinking, he definitly knows them.

You can create this same check-up at home. Just get some shoe boxes or other containers and cover them in different colors with construction paper. Then make shapes, like hearts, squares or whatever out of the same color construction paper and have him match them up.

Its ok if he isnt 100%, but you should be able to see if he is just blindly guessing or if he is really able to see and is trying to get them in the correct place.

GL!

Hi M.:

Boy have I been through this!

My brother, who was 15 months older than I, was colorblind. So, I grew up with it.

My son, who is 10 years old, is colorblind.

AND, I think my 3 year old son is as well. I'm going to give it a little more time before I'm sure.

When my 10 year old was 5 I became sure that he, indeed, was colorblind. He mixes his colors. Brown with Green, Orange with Green, Pink with Orange, Green with Black. Just like my brother did. Now I am seeing the same color mixing with my 3 year old.

You can count on the usual colors (listed above) for confusion.

Yellow, red, blue, white, black are all pretty consistently correct.

I hope this helps! You will probably find that it really isn't a huge deal, unless he tries to dress himself!!!! As long as you make his teachers aware, he won't have many problems at school. Once the other kids find out, they will ask your son on a regular basis what color things are, just to see him get "that look" in his eyes (you will find out what look that is when your son gets older. It's a kind of questioning, concentration and quessing look. Very cute, I think). Anyway, the kids love to ask him what colors are. It gets a bit bothersome, but not enough to have made my son or brother upset.

I hope you will find it to be an endearing quality about your son.

Good luck and don't dress him in pink when he's a teenager. He WILL eventually find out!!!!

Hi there! My son is speech delayed so right now at the age of 5, we still have some trouble getting him to say his colors. But when we had initial concerns about color blindness (at age 3 exactly.) since we have a strong hereditary factor in our family, we just took him to a regular eye doctor. They have these colored "dot" pictures. The doctor asks the child "What shape is this?" and I think it was a series of circles, triangles, a square, a house and very simple things like that. A color blind person can't see the picture inside the picture but to a regular sighted person it's pretty clear. It took about 5 minutes and gave us a huge relief! Good luck!

Mine took almost 18 months to learn his colors - No color blindness or anything. Some kids to take longer - if you are concerned, next time ask his doctor about it. There are some great tests for younger children just for color blindness.

My son who just turned 3 is the exact same way. I worry even more because my husband is mildly color blind. When I checked with the Pedi he said not to rush to any conclusions and wait a bit to see if he catches up. He said colors may be the thing he struggles with. Hopefully your son will start knowing his colors soon. Good luck!

M.,

My son was exactly like yours at the same age, and I was convinced he was color blind because he was so smart about everything else. Once he was closer to 3, he started getting them right, and I bet yours will too. Good luck!

My son was the same way super smart in every area but lacking in the color department. His favorite colors were yellow and orange, which a color-blind friend of mine said are usually the favorite for color blind kids since it's the easiest to see. But as he got older he started to get his colors. When he was 5 he could differentiate between purple, violet and indigo. So I wouldn't worry! His colors will catch up.

Megan,
You may want to go ahead and contact your local Early Childhood program for an eval. Services are free for children 3 and under.

Hi, M....I think it's WAY too early to be concerned; our Noah who is now 4 exhibited that same behavior and he's a color king now! I think it's just because they don't all know their colors this early. Girls are usually quicker at colors (as evidenced by my nieces, who knew their colors by around 2) but Noah really really knows his colors now.

Also, if you are concerned about medical issues, consult your pediatrician because that's what we did when we thought Noah was color blind at 2! They don't laugh...no question is a "dumb" question! Good luck!

My son did the same thing. He was very quick to learn shapes and is very smart. He couldn't seem to learn his colors though. He finally picked them up when he was closer to 3. He got red and green mixed up alot. I wouldn't worry about it now.

My son is 3.5 years old and still can't get the colors right every time. I was so worried that he was either behind for his age or color blind. After several conversations his teacher sent me home with this toy. It had a wooden base and 5 different color posts. Each post had several colored shapes that slid over it. I took all the little shaped-pieces off, mixed them up and asked him to sort them and put them back on the post. Duh! Why didn't I think about that. He did it just perfectly. Now, I know I just need to keep working on his colors. Honestly, his teacher told me it is not uncommon for kids his age to struggle with colors.

First of all do you have a family history of color blindness? It is a hereditary disease. The males are the ones to "get" it but it is passed through females. In my family, we know that my great grandfather was color blind. He pased it to my grandmother and her brother. Her brother had no signs of it because his mother's father didn't have it. My grandmother had three boys (my dad and my two uncles). All three of them have various degrees of color blindness. I am the only daughter between any of them (I have a brother and one male cousin). Again neither of the boys have signs of the disease because our mother's fathers didn't have it, but I became a carrier. I have a 3 year old son so there is a potential that he has it. So far he seems fine but our eye doctor is aware of our strong family history and is keeping a watch on him. She will test him when he is old enough (probably next year).
I say all of this to hopefully calm your fears. If you don't have a family history of color blindness, then it is unlikely that your son has it.

My son was just like this....took him to get tested for color blindness...and he was jsut totally messing with me. He knew it bugged me and he thought it was funny..... so maybe your child already has a sense of humor too?
E.

Is your father colorblind? Colorblindness is passed through the mother (daughter of a colorblind man) to her sons. The female carries the gene, but is rarely affected herself. My father was colorblind, and both my boys were also. There are variations of colorblindness; from seeing only shades of gray, black and white to having trouble distinguishing blues, purple, red, and green. There are special tests using colored shapes and numbers that you can do with him, but if there is no colorblindness in your family, I doubt that's the issue. Good luck!