Our ability to see anything is dependent on light, so it is only natural to assume when light is disrupted by a defect on our retina that it would affect our vision. The two most common vision defects people experience are glare and halos. Halos appear as bright circles around sources of light, you will notice this the most at night time—particularly as you are driving and oncoming cars headlights come zooming by. Glare occurs in your vision when light enters your eye and actually obstructs your vision.

There are however some things that can cause you to see these vision defects more prominently:

Age: As people age, their eyes become increasingly more sensitive to light and take longer to adjust to different levels of light. Unfortunately, this means people tend to see glare and halos more often as they get older.

Eye Color: You might be surprised to learn that eye color can have an effect on your light sensitivity—in fact those who are born with more lightly colored eyes experience a higher prevalence of halos and glare.

Eye Disease and other refractive issues: The biggest contributor to vision glare and halos is the development of cataracts—and eye disease that is seen in many older adults that fogs up your eyes natural lens. Other contributing eye problems are: dry eye, scratched cornea and general retinal health problems.

Tips on how to reduce the prevalence in glares and halos in your vision:

Consult an eye care professional: If the glares and halos you are seeing are prominent enough to interfere with your day-to-day activities then it is important that you seek a professionals’ medical opinion and undergo an eye exam. This will help to determine what the root cause of your halos and glare are.

Wear the right pair of sunglasses: Sunglasses that are polarized and/or have an orange, yellow or red tint have been known to help reduce glare from the sun. 

Cataract surgery: If you are indeed suffering from cataracts then you will need to undergo cataract surgery. Your eye care professional can help explain how to proceed should a cataract surgery be the solution to your halos and glare problems.

Most importantly, if you think you are having trouble seeing because of too much vision glare and halos then make sure to set up an appointment with your eye care professional.