Can Your Eyes Change Color?

Almost all babies are born with eyes that appear blueish, brownish, or greyish and typically change color in early infancy as their bodies produce more melanin. 

Most of the time, the eye color you have by the time you reach the end of your third year will stay more or less the same throughout your life.

Eyes May Subtly Change Color Throughout A Lifetime

However, certain things can cause your eyes to experience color changes throughout your lifetime. In most cases, the changes are subtle—more like a deepening or lightening of the existing eye color. That said, particular eye or medical conditions may cause more dramatic changes.

The first three years of life

As mentioned above, a baby’s eye color at birth may not determine their final eye color. This is because eye color is determined by the amount of pigment in the iris (the colored part of the eye). Melanin is the pigment responsible for eye color. The more melanin in the iris, the darker the iris will be.

This is why infants often begin life with lighter eyes that change as they grow and produce more melanin. Some babies born with blue eyes may have darker blue, green, brown, or hazel eyes. Babies born with brown eyes usually stay the same or grow darker - or more nuanced with other flecks of color - over the next three years.

By three years old, eye color is considered “permanent,” although some things can change iris color.

What you’re wearing (or changes in skin color)

Eye color (or the way color appears) can also be affected by light and the way light reflects on and around you. So, your eyes may also appear to change color depending on what you are wearing or due to changes in skin color. 

This is why eyes with blue and green hues can seem to change between varying shades of green and blue based on the color of your shirt or outerwear. Depending on your clothing, blue or brown eyes may seem to grow darker or lighter. Clothing color can also make hazel eyes appear more brown or more green. Being sunburned or suntanned can also make your eyes look as if they are a slightly different color than they are without extra color. 

These changes are purely a reaction to light reflection and refraction and how that affects how different color shades appear. Rather than being physiological, they are an optical illusion.

Cataracts

When people develop cataracts, a clouding of the natural lens over time, the transparent lens becomes more opaque. This causes the lens to develop a milky look. The thicker the cataracts are, the more opaque the lens looks, which can affect eye color. If left too long, cataracts cause severe vision loss and can lead to legal blindness.

Fortunately, in most cases, cataract surgery has become a straightforward laser procedure. It is a low-risk, outpatient surgical procedure that restores vision and the original eye color.

Sun exposure

There are four ways that sun exposure can affect eye color (beyond the sunburn/suntan effects mentioned above). Your eyes are not that different from your skin when it comes to sensitivity to UV rays. Without proper protection, excessive UV rays can cause cataracts, which we discussed in #3. However, UV damage to the eyes can also cause:

• Iris freckles. These are just like freckles on your skin, but they’re caused by pigment changes on the iris. They will make your eyes appear darker in color wherever the freckles appear. If you have blue or green eyes, the freckles usually appear brown or black in color. If you have brown eyes, they may create darker brown or black flecks in the iris. The more freckles you have, the more dramatic this eye change may be.
• Pingueculas or pterygium. Both pingueculas and pterygium are caused by excess sun damage to the eyes. They are most common in people who frequently work outdoors (without a hat and sunglasses) and those who surf, sail, or ski. Both are caused by excess protein and fatty deposits that build up in the outer tissue(s). Pingueculas usually make the affected areas of the sclera (the white portion of the eyeball) appear yellowish, and that can stretch into the iris and even the pupil. Pterygiums will appear whitish or pinkish wherever they develop.
• Skin cancer.The eyes are also susceptible to skin cancer. This is why you should only wear high-quality sunglasses that guarantee UV protection. Darker lenses without UV protection can reduce sun glare, but they don’t protect your eyes from UV damage. Skin cancers can create spots or blotches on the affected areas that alter eye color.

Certain eye or medical conditions

We often know a patient is sick before they or their primary healthcare provider does. This is because, in addition to being the windows to the soul, the eyes are also a direct window into your health. 

Medical conditions that affect eye color include:

• Arcus senilis. This is another eye condition that is more common in adults 65+ than it is in younger patients. Arcus senilis creates an arc or ring around the iris that appears blue, white, or grey in color. It’s caused by excess lipid deposits in the cornea.
• Pigment dispersion syndrome. This syndrome causes pigment to disperse from the iris, which can make them paler in color. It can also lead to glaucoma and blurred vision.
• Pseudoexfoliation syndrome. Patients with pseudoexfoliation syndrome develop white, flaky material (like skin flakes) in various parts of the eye. If they build up in the iris, they cause eye color changes.
• Glaucoma (medication). While glaucoma itself doesn’t cause changes in a person’s eye color, medication used to treat glaucoma can. Most of the time, glaucoma medications don’t affect people with blue or green eyes, but those with brown or hazel eyes may turn a darker shade of brown.
• Inflammation or eye diseases/infections. Finally, any conditions that cause eye inflammation or infection can alter eye color or appearance. Usually, it’s the sclera that becomes more pink or red, but the iris can be affected too.
• Eye trauma. Eye trauma or minor eye injuries can also cause noticeable eye color changes, especially if there are broken blood vessels. These broken blood vessels can cause blood-red fluid to fill affected tissues, and those pockets of pooled blood are visible. They will eventually change color (blue/black/yellow) just like a bruise until the blood reabsorbs and the colors fade. Eye injuries or strokes can cause the pupil to enlarge, which can also affect how the iris looks. It’s natural for the pupils to expand (grow larger) and contract (become more like pin-points) with changes in light. However, they do so at the same time and readjust when the light changes again. Permanent changes in pupil sizes, or pupils that are different in size from one to the other, require an immediate check-in with your healthcare provider or urgent care.

Let Eye to Eye Family Vision Care Look Into Changes In Eye Color

Are your eyes changing color in ways that don’t seem normal? It might be time to schedule an appointment with us here at Eye to Eye Family Care to take a look. Health-related changes in eye color require swift attention to get to the bottom of things and manage the root cause, preventing unnecessary vision loss.