If your DS is colorblind...

[Claki]

when did you find out? I'm about 80 percent sure DS1 is not colorblind. But lately he mixes up his pinks/greens/reds. I'm starting to wonder. My maternal grandfather was colorblind. At what age did you suspect and what age was it diagnosed?

[shawnandangel]

There are tests online like: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&biw=1280&bih=576&gbv=2&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=color+blind+test+for+kids&oq=color+blind+test+for&aq=0&aqi=g4&aql=&gs_sm=c&gs_upl=44390l45305l0l46976l4l4l0l2l2l0l165l310l0.2 l2l0

but to diagnose you would need to take him to the eye doctor.

[chays]

He's not even 2, right? I think it is WAY too young to be thinking about that. My DS2 (10/09) doesn't even speak yet. DD, when she was young (but for sure over age 2) I could have sworn was color blind -- she was ALWAYS getting them wrong. Needless to say, she is fine. I am not saying he's not color blind, a trip to the opthomologist may ease your nerves, but I think he's way too young to make that call.

[mrshalco]

DS1 is colorblind. We suspected it before he turned 4 but addressed it at his 4 year check up. He didn't know his numbers yet so we weren't sure how accurate the test would be but when he did the first page and was asked to tell the Dr. what number he saw.....he put his nose to the book and said "what number?" We figured since he couldn't even see the number ....it was pretty much a definite but we waited until his 5 year check up to confirm it.

My GF, Father, Brother, and FIL are all colorblind. I'm assuming DS2 will be too.

I don't know how old your child is - but make sure you let his teachers know each year. They have all been so appreciative of me telling them instead of them trying to figure it out!

[jren]

I swore my DD was colorblind. When she was 3, she MAYBE knew 2 colors. She mixed up blue and green forever. Coloring was never her "thing". But finally around age 4 she suddenly knew every color and is not colorblind.

[Claki]

<<He's not even 2, right? I think it is WAY too young to be thinking about that. My DS2 (10/09) doesn't even speak yet. DD, when she was young (but for sure over age 2) I could have sworn was color blind -- she was ALWAYS getting them wrong. Needless to say, she is fine. I am not saying he's not color blind, a trip to the opthomologist may ease your nerves, but I think he's way too young to make that call.>>

Oh I know it's still age appropriate for him to mix up his colors. It just is a little off-putting that it is just green/pinks/reds that he mixes up. Those are the typical colors that colorblind people can't differentiate. And of course he doesn't recognize numerals yet so the tests online aren't any help. We're just going to watch him for the next couple of years, I'm just curious at what age others suspected.

[JoyNChrist]

DS1 is red-green colorblind (as is DH). We suspected it around 2.5 (he would frequently mix up reds/greens/browns, and to a lesser extent blues and purples, which are the colors that trip DH up), and confirmed it around his 4th birthday with a number test (he knows his numbers very well, so it wasn't that).

I'm interested to see if DS2 is colorblind as well.

[Claki]

DS1 is red-green colorblind (as is DH). We suspected it around 2.5 (he would frequently mix up reds/greens/browns, and to a lesser extent blues and purples, which are the colors that trip DH up), and confirmed it around his 4th birthday with a number test (he knows his numbers very well, so it wasn't that).

I'm interested to see if DS2 is colorblind as well.

That's a coincidence right, because men who are colorblind can't pass it down to their sons? If I understand correctly?

[tarahsolazy]

We suspected it around 3, and had it confirmed when he was 4.5. We do make sure to tell his teachers about it. He has trouble with red/green/orange, but also purples, to a degree.

[niccig]

That's a coincidence right, because men who are colorblind can't pass it down to their sons? If I understand correctly?

It's carried on the x-chromosome. My Dad is colorblind and I am a carrier (one of my x's is Dad's only x). We were worried about DS around 3 yo. But by 3.5 yo, he knew his colours.

If you suspect, do tell preschool, day care if he's in that environment, as many things are colour coded. I told DS's teachers when he started preschool at 3yo, she was the one who told me 6 months later, he knew all his colours. DS doesn't like to perform, so we couldn't ask him. The teacher had him play a game where had to get things of a certain colour and he got it all right every day for a week.

[JoyNChrist]

That's a coincidence right, because men who are colorblind can't pass it down to their sons? If I understand correctly?

No, it can be inherited from father to son. It's a recessive gene, sex-linked (or is it sex-influenced? been a couple semesters since I took genetics). Anyway, it's much more common in men, because it's located on the x-chromosome, of which men only have one. So if it's recessive, they're colorblind. For girls, they have to inherit TWO recessive x chromosomes, so it's much less common. And for a girl to be colorblind, her father must be colorblind, but that's not the case with boys.

I'm probably not explaining it very well, but basically if DH is colorblind and I wasn't a carrier, we couldn't have a colorblind child. With DH being colorblind and me being a carrier, each of our kids has about a 50/50 chance of being colorblind. If DH and I were BOTH colorblind, ALL of our kids would be as well. If DH was not colorblind but I was a carrier, there'd be a 1 in 4 chance that a son would be colorblind (but we would not be able to have a colorblind daughter).

I'm about 90% sure I got that right and did the Punnet squares correctly, lol. Of course, as far as I know, that only applies to genetic red-green colorblindness. I'm not sure about other kinds.

That's probably way more of an explanation than you wanted, huh? ;)

[♥ms.pacman♥]

That's a coincidence right, because men who are colorblind can't pass it down to their sons? If I understand correctly?

:yeahthat: this was my understanding too..that it's carried on the X chromosome so if a male is colorblind he must have gotten it through his mom. the mom doesn't have to be colorblind, just has to be a carrier. girls (because they have 2 X's) who are colorblind inherit it from both mom & dad (mom must be at least a carrier, dad must be colorblind) but since boy has X and Y, the X (with colorblind gene) must be from the mom.

DH is colorblind so i looked into this when we had kids. there is no history of colorblindness in my family history so even with DH's colorblindness we figured out there would be no way we could have had a color blind child. DS has started correctly pointing out colors such as pink and brown (which DH has major trouble telling apart) so i know he isn't. DD though is a carrier, so if she has a son there is a 50% chance he will be colorblind (doesn't matter if husband is colorblind or not, since he will get Y chromosome from him).

eta: i found this chart that shows those squares, if it helps. also has those tests with numbers.i remember DH telling me when he was 4 or 5 or so that he took the test at the doctor's office (with those numbers in circles) which confirmed he was colorblind.
http://waynesword.palomar.edu/colorbl1.htm

[JoyNChrist]

:yeahthat: this was my understanding too..that it's carried on the X chromosome so if a male is colorblind he must have gotten it through his mom. the mom doesn't have to be colorblind, just has to be a carrier. girls (because they have 2 X's) who are colorblind inherit it from both mom & dad (mom must be at least a carrier, dad must be colorblind) but since boy has X and Y, the X (with colorblind gene) must be from the mom.

I hadn't thought about it like this. I guess technically this is true...DS1's colorblindness comes from me, not DH. I was thinking about it more as an overall thing...DH being colorblind makes our chances of having a colorblind child 50/50, whereas if he wasn't colorblind and I was only a carrier, it would be 1 in 4. But speaking specifically about sons, this is true.

It's totally my fault. Awesome...one more thing he can blame on his mom one day. ;)

[niccig]

I hadn't thought about it like this. I guess technically this is true...DS1's colorblindness comes from me, not DH. I was thinking about it more as an overall thing...DH being colorblind makes our chances of having a colorblind child 50/50, whereas if he wasn't colorblind and I was only a carrier, it would be 1 in 4. But speaking specifically about sons, this is true.

It's totally my fault. Awesome...one more thing he can blame on his mom one day. ;)

You're DD could be colourblind too if she got your X with the colorblind mutation, as she already has DH's x. Or she could be a carrier if gets your dominant non-color blind x and DH's colourblind x.

Being colourblind isn't all bad. My Dad was a forward scout in the army and went to Vietnam. Camouflage doesn't blend in for him, he said it stands out clear as day. He was very good at his job!