The sun makes us all squint, a phenomenon medically known as PHOTOPHOBIA, which literally means "fear of light." But if you notice you are shielding your eyes or reaching for your sunglasses more often than before and you are also sensitive to indoor lights, your photophobia may be signaling any number of conditions. Light sensitivity is more common in blue-eyed people and migraine sufferers than others.
Photophobia can signal such eye disorders as cataracts, retinal detachment, and corneal abrasions. It can be a reaction to such drugs as tetracycline, doxycycline, belladonna, and even quinine, or it may be a sign of a vitamin B2 deficiency. Light sensitivity can also be a dead give-away that a person has been abusing alcohol, cocaine, amphetamines, or other drugs.
Sometimes photophobia signals some serious but treatable conditions, such as measles, hypertension, and Grave's Disease, as well as such potentially life-threatening diseases as meningitis, encephalitis, botulism, rabies, and mercury poisoning. However, you had have other, much more serious signs in addition to light sensitivity if you suffered from any of these potentially deadly disorders.
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