Albinos Are Not Different From Anyone Else.

Albinos are individuals that are born with a congenital disorder that is characterized by a partial or

complete absence of melanin in the skin, eyes and hair. Melanin is the normal pigment that is responsible for colour. This results in white sand pale skin, white hair and pale eyes.

Albinism is quite common in Africa, where most people do not understand why two parents with no signs of albinism can have an albino baby. Many women have been driven out of their homes and many albino babies have been rejected by their fathers because of this. Some cultures believe that albinos have magical powers and are used for rituals. Some believe that they bring bad luck or come about because the mother has been unfaithful. There are so many issues of cultural and social discrimination, persecution, abuse and violence faced by albinos because of this lack of understanding.

Albinism will occur in an offspring only if the two parents carry the albino gene which is normally recessive. It only becomes dominant when the gene allele is carried by the two parents. Albinism may not have occurred for one or more generations in either or both parents, but must have occurred before.

Apart from these issues, albinos face the following two main physical challenges;

1. Albino skin is prone to burning easily because of melanin deficiency. Melanin provides protection from sun radiation. The more the melanin present in the skin, the more the protection from the sun.
2. Albinos have visual issues. Their eyes are sensitive to light because the iris is deficient in melanin and cannot properly protect the retina from light. This also makes albinos squint in bright light. Because the iris has little or no colour, blood vessels may show through the iris.

These physical challenges can be overcome with some of the following adjustments to lifestyle.

• Avoid exposure to direct sunlight.
• Reduce the time spent in bright sunlight.
• Wear hats with wide brims that can cover your face and parts of your body.
• Use sunscreen when you are going to be exposed to the sun for long periods of time.
• Wear dark glasses or tinted lenses in bright light.

Here are a few facts about your chances of having an albino child.

• Two people with albinism may not necessarily have an albino child, but the odds are very high for it.
• When both carry albinism gene but do not have albinism, they have a 25% or one in four chance of having an albino child. The children may however carry the gene.
• An albino parent and a parent without albinism cannot have albino children.

Being an albino should not limit you from reaching your goal. You are a normal human being with a

white colour in a world that has so many shades of skin colour anyway. And to those who persecute albinos, please stop, albinos are perfectly normal and healthy people who should be loved and accepted like anyone else. They feel the same way everyone does.

Albinism is not curable because it is not a disease but a medical condition that you have to understand and manage. It is not contagious so, don’t run away from albinos. Associating with an albino will not make you have an albino child.

Black, brown, peach, cream or white and any colour in between, we must love and celebrate ourselves.

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