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Watch 10-year-old boy's emotional response to seeing color for the first time
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Xavier McCoury has a rare subtype of color blindness called monochromacy, which causes him to see the world in shades of black, white and gray. - photo by Lottie Johnson


Color blindness affects millions of people worldwide, with about 1 in 12 men and 1 in 200 women experiencing it in some form, according to enchroma.com.

Xavier McCoury has a rare subtype of color blindness called monochromacy, which causes him to see the world in shades of black, white and gray, according to wfmynews2.com.

The 10-year-old boy in Charlotte, North Carolina, was given for his recent birthday a pair of Enchroma glasses that are specially designed to enhance color vision.

In a video documenting this moment, Xavier has a big smile as he opens up his gift and holds it up for his family to see. When he puts the glasses on, he is immediately overcome with emotion as he looks around and sees bright, vivid colors for the first time. He then gets to see the colors of some of his favorite items, including a baseball, an American flag and a baseball helmet.

Do you think youre ever going to take (the glasses) off? a family member asks him in the video.

I dont want to," he says. Thank you, thank you, so much.
Its toxic: New study says blue light from tech devices can speed up blindness
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A new study from the University of Toledo found that blue light from digital devices can transform molecules in your eyes retina into cell killers. - photo by Herb Scribner
It turns out checking Twitter or Facebook before bed is bad for your health.

A new study from the University of Toledo found that blue light from digital devices can transform molecules in your eyes retina into cell killers.

That process can lead to age-related macular degeneration, which is a leading cause of blindness in the United States, according to the researchs extract.

Blue light is a common issue for many modern Americans. Blue light is emitted from screens, most notably at night, causing sleep loss, eye strain and a number of other issues.

Dr. Ajith Karunarathne, assistant professor in the UT Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, said our constant exposure to blue light cant be blocked by the lens or cornea.

"It's no secret that blue light harms our vision by damaging the eye's retina. Our experiments explain how this happens, and we hope this leads to therapies that slow macular degeneration, such as a new kind of eye drop, he said.

Macular degeneration is an incurable eye disease that often affects those in their 50s or 60s. It occurs after the death of photoreceptor cells in the retina. Those cells need retinal to sense light and help signal the brain.

The research team found blue light exposure created poisonous chemical molecules that killed photoreceptor cells

"It's toxic. If you shine blue light on retinal, the retinal kills photoreceptor cells as the signaling molecule on the membrane dissolves," said Kasun Ratnayake, a Ph.D. student researcher working in Karunarathne's cellular photo chemistry group. "Photoreceptor cells do not regenerate in the eye. When they're dead, they're dead for good."

However, the researchers found a molecule called alpha-tocopherol, which comes from Vitamin E, can help prevent cell death, according to Futurism.

The researchers plan to review how light from TVs, cellphones and tablet screens affect the eyes as well.

"If you look at the amount of light coming out of your cellphone, it's not great but it seems tolerable," said Dr. John Payton, visiting assistant professor in the UT Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. "Some cellphone companies are adding blue-light filters to the screens, and I think that is a good idea."

Indeed, Apple released a Night Shift mode two years ago to help quell blue lights strain on the eyes, according to The Verge. The screen will dim into a warmer, orange light that will cause less stress on the eyes.