All types of color-blindness are said to be caused by the defect or lack of cone cells in the eyes[1]. Since cone cells sense color[2] and rod cells can only sense light intensity[3], the lack of cone cells would mean that the eye cannot detect color. However, rod cell function better in low light than cone cells. Color-blind people have fewer cone cells than other people. My question is, is it possible that they also have more rod cells than other people?
I am color-blind, and I have observed instances where I was able to see better in low light than other people. For example, most often when I read at night or in low light, people have wondered how I'm able to see in the low light condition. I also do not turn on the light most of the time when I walk around the house at night, whereas other people in the house often cannot see well enough to walk without turning on the light. I also recently noticed that my favorite theme (for VS Code), is actually meant for people who work in low light conditions or at night. But they have also noted that it is suitable for people with color blindness.
All these occurrences made me wonder whether color-blind people have more rod cells than average people, and hence can see better in low light too.
[1] ‘Color Blindness’ entry in Wikipedia