Although defective color vision may be acquired as a result of another eye disorder, the vast majority of color blind cases are hereditary - present at birth.
Color blindness is rooted in the chromosomal differences between males and females.
Females may be carriers of color blindness, but males are more commonly affected. About 8 percent of males and 0.5 percent of females are color deficient. Color blindness is a malfunction of the retina, which converts light energy into electircal energy that is then transmitted to the brain. The cones are responsible for encoding color. Normal persons are able to match all colors of the spectrum by mixtures of only three fundamental color sensitivities.