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Color Blindness Factsheet (for Schools)

Medically reviewed by: Mary L. Gavin, MD

What Teachers Should Know

Color blindness is caused by problems in the color-detecting nerve cells located in the back of the eye, called cones. As a result, some people have trouble telling the difference between red and green (the most common kind of color blindness), and between blue and yellow. Achromatopsia is a rare a form of color blindness in which people can't see any colors — they only see shades of gray.