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Understanding which organ does the seeing is the first step in understanding how we see color. While your eyes transmit information to your brain, it is your brain that actually sees what they are showing you. 

The tissues that work together in your eye provide information to your brain that tell you what you're seeing. The cornea is where the light rays that reflect off what you're looking at enter your eyes.

Here is what you need to know about color perception and vision changes. 

What Is Color Perception?

Color perception is a series of physical and chemical reactions, which allow humans to see in color. The process of color perception occurs in the mind. Our eyes respond to light and send signals to the brain to process. There are two types of cells in the eye that are responsible for vision. 

Rods and cones are both cells located in the retina. They respond to light when it enters the eye. Rods are highly light-sensitive, allowing for vision in a range of light levels, while cones are sensitized to colors of particular wavelength ranges. 

The Top Age-Related Vision Changes

Some of the most common changes we can experience with our vision as we get older include:

  • Changes to Color Perception: As we get older, more colors may grow dull or yellowish.
  • Reduced Tear Production: Tears keep our eyes healthy and maintain clear vision. When we age, our eyes produce fewer tears, which can result in symptoms of dry eye. We need tears to maintain clear vision and maintain eye health. 
  • Requiring More Light to See: The older we get, we might begin to need more light to see clearly. 
  • Presbyopia: The majority of adults over age 45 begin to struggle with close vision as the lenses in their eyes become less flexible. 
  • Increased Sensitivity to Glare: Along with age-related changes, there is an increased sensitivity to glare in senior people. This is a problem especially while driving, but wearing polarized lenses will help block the glare. 

While these changes can be tolerable, there are several sight-threatening conditions that become more common as we get older and are a major risk factor:

  • Diabetic Retinopathy
  • Macular Degeneration
  • Cataracts
  • Glaucoma
  • Retinal Detachment

Early diagnosis is the best way to ensure a favorable prognosis, so make sure to keep up with your regular eye exams as you get older.

Helping Your Vision Stay Healthy 

Between regular eye exams, there’s a lot we can do in our daily lives to protect our eyesight. Wear UV-blocking sunglasses outside, stay active, eat healthy foods, and avoid harmful habits. If you spend a lot of time looking at screens throughout the day, give your eyes a break every 20 minutes from the screen. 

This technique can help you with eye strain. Keeping your eyes healthy will greatly reduce eye disease risk factors, and you’ll get other benefits that come with a healthy lifestyle. 

How to Help Your Eyes Stay Healthy

Early diagnosis is critical for stopping many sight-threatening conditions, which is why we should be on the watch for signs of age-related vision loss. As we age, we should be vigilant in watching for signs of age-related vision, because early diagnosis is critical in preventing many sight-threatening conditions from progressing. Asheville Vision and Wellness recommends scheduling a yearly eye exam

If you are ready to schedule an eye exam with the experts at Asheville Vision and Wellness, contact us today