Little-known signs of ‘age-related’ eye condition after Goldie Hawn reveals heartbreaking diagnosis
During last night's Oscars, actress and Hollywood legend Goldie Hawn revealed that she was suffering from a heartbreaking health condition that could eventually make her blind.
The 79-year-old was on stage presenting the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film alongside Andrew Garfield when she was forced to stop her speech because she was unable to read the teleprompter.
Hawn - who won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role in 1969's Cactus Flower - said: "I was so lucky [to] make movies... and making people laugh. And maybe some didn't, but that's OK."
"In the meantime..." Hawn continued, before stopping and turning to her co-presenter and going off-script. "OK. Sweetheart, can you read that? I can't read that."
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The actress then said: "I'm completely blind. I mean, I am," before revealing the reason she couldn't read the script - cataracts.
According to the NHS, cataracts occur when the lens - a small transparent disc inside the eye - develops cloudy patches. This can eventually lead to blindness.
Cataracts can affect people of all ages but are most common in older people, with age being a leading cause of the breakdown of proteins in the lens, causing the formation of the patches.
The most common symptom is blurred or misty vision - almost like the feeling you get when your glasses or contact lenses are smudged and need cleaning - but there are also a number of lesser known signs that you could be developing this largely age-related eye condition.
Change in colour perception
As cataracts form, you may experience a change in your perception of colours. More specifically, colours may appear faded or with a yellow or brownish tinge.
This is because the cloudiness of your eye's lens acts like a filter, absorbing certain wavelengths of light and making colours less vibrant.
Double vision
Double vision can also signify a problem.
Also known as diplopia, cataracts can cause you to see two of the same image either horizontally, vertically or diagonally because they scatter light as it enters the eye, creating multiples of the object on the retina.
Glaring lights
People with cataracts can also have trouble perceiving light.
Because the light entering your eye is scattered rather than focused, bright lights can feel dazzling and uncomfortable. You may also start to see a circle of light around bright light sources such as car headlights.
Trouble seeing in the dark
As for one of the earliest symptoms of the condition, you may start experiencing difficulty seeing in the dark as the scattering of any light sources makes low-light situations even trickier to navigate.
If you're experiencing cataracts symptoms or any other problems with your vision, pay a visit to your GP who will be able to refer you to an eye specialist.
Bec Oakes