Coloured lenses and dyslexia - what’s the verdict?
It’s a well known fact that people with dyslexia find it difficult to process words and letters, often due to a visual disturbance affecting their interpretation of the text. It is important to diagnose dyslexia early to quickly address the symptoms. Various solutions have been suggested to resolve these problems such as font type, font size and even lighting, but one of the most bizarre solutions lies in the case of coloured lens glasses.
There is evidence to suggest that for some sufferers of dyslexia, lenses with a specially coloured filter can relieve symptoms of perceptual distortion, and ultimately improve reading skills. David Harris, then principal research optician at the Corneal Laser Centre at Clatterbridge Hospital, Cheshire, was informed by patients that coloured lenses prescribed to improve their colour vision, also improved their reading. Professor John Stein of Oxford University suggests a possible reason for this improvement may lie in the cell structure of nerve cells. According to Stein, dyslexia is the result of faults in the nerve cells connecting the eye retina and brain’s visual cortex. These nerve cells respond most effectively to yellow and orange lights, which may suggest a possible reason why coloured lenses can improve visual activity and brain response.
Every case of dyslexia is different but optometrists are able to use a device called an Intuitive Colorimeter to determine whether a coloured lens could improve reading skills and if so, which colour tint is needed to alleviate symptoms.
If you think you may suffer from dyslexia, take a look at the following common symptoms:
- Headaches during or after reading
- An intolerance of bright light (photophobia)
- Watering or red eyes
- Text appears blurred or moving, perhaps with doubling of letters or words
- Fatigue after short periods of study
- Tendency to frequently move position of texts
At Direct Sight for just £5 we offer a lens tinting service to support your needs, so you can choose your favourite frames adapted to suit your requirements.