What is light sensitivity?
Light sensitivity also known as 'photophobia' often affects people who have an underlying eye condition. For some people, everyday lighting conditions can seem too bright, causing discomfort and affecting quality of vision. Light sensitivity can increase when you have an eye condition, but it can also be caused by some general health conditions. For some people with light sensitivity, there can be no known medical cause. Whatever the underlying cause, reducing the amount of light entering the eye can still help to relieve the symptoms of light sensitivity.
Glare is where bright or reflected light can affect the ability to see or is uncomfortable to look at. Many people with low vision need more light than usual to read. However, too much or the wrong sort of light can cause problems with glare. There are two types of glare:
Discomfort glare occurs when a light source is just too strong for our eyes. It may cause us to screw up or shade our eyes; it can even cause us to close our eyes.
Disability glare reduces how well we can see. Disability glare can be caused by eye conditions and can occur with ordinary light sources and normal levels of light.
A low vision specialist can give you advice on coping with glare and the best way to use lighting to avoid glare.
