It’s rare to see a man in the city with pale fair skin, white hair with gray hair, eyebrows and eyelashes. A similar congenital pathology is called albinism, and people carrying the defective gene are called albinos.
Nowadays, increased radioactive background, poor nutrition, bad habits and bad heredity, deviations in the genetic set occur more and more often, therefore the number of “white” people in the world is growing. Until now, some people attribute magical properties to them, while others, on the contrary, do not accept albinos in society, considering them, forgive the pun, "white crows." This position is extremely illiterate, since a person does not affect what chromosome set he can be born with. Neglecting birth defects and defects means being inhuman and inhumane.
Today we have collected 10 interesting facts about people with albinism, which will help to educate the population about the aspects of the development of the disease and to instill in them the right attitude to it.
10. Albinism is not uncommon
Yes, many people have never seen an albino in their life, and this is not surprising, because according to statistics, only 1 person out of 20 thousand suffers from an unusual disease. About 50 albinos can simultaneously live in a million-plus city - and this is not uncommon, as they also travel in transport, visit public places and social institutions, and sometimes manage to get on local television as invited guests. By the way, among the representatives of the black race, there are more people without pigmentation. And if you take the whole planet, then a whole 1% of the world population is people with albinism. The carrier of the recessive gene of this pathology is theoretically every 70 people.
9. Different types of albinism
Few people know that depigmentation in an albino can be primary (congenital) and secondary (acquired). It all depends on the degree of blockade of the secretion of the tyrosinase enzyme, which is responsible for the production of the melanin pigment, which provides the color of our dermis. Complete albinism is accompanied by concomitant eye diseases (cataracts, visual impairment, strabismus), photophobia, epidermal pathologies (dryness and sensitivity, tendency to burns) and other pathologies. But partial or incomplete mountaineering is more of a visual problem, which is manifested by white spots, spots on the skin, gray strands in the hair, depigmented eyebrows or eyelashes.
8. Albinism is a congenital disease.
Mostly albinism is innate. Defective genes are transmitted to the child, which permanently block the production of melanin. If both of the parents are carriers of the gene for this pathology, then the risk of having an albino baby is 25%. In the case when one parent has a normal gene, it will be enough for the synthesis of melanin. If your family history has ever seen cases of albinism, then you can check yourself for carriage. To do this, it is enough to let the scientist check in the laboratory the follicles of your hair for the ability to produce melanin.
7. One in 17,000
In fact, one out of 17 thousand people in any case has a full or partial form of albinism. For the disease, there is no separation by gender, only by race. However, it was noted that in men the ocular form of pathology is more common - when the iris is also devoid of pigmentation.
6. Albinism can pass
It is believed that in the presence of a defective gene, medicine is powerless - the way it is. Medicines for albinos have not yet been invented, and the partial form is corrected exclusively by cosmetic methods and plastic surgery. Nevertheless, there are cases when in babies with a simple form of the disease, fair skin, hair, eyelashes and eyebrows gradually acquire pigmentation with aging.
5. Vitamin D
Scientists estimate that albino people, despite their lack of ability to sunbathe, produce vitamin D, which is valuable for the skin and musculoskeletal system, 5 times faster than others. What is the reason for this riddle? The fact is that vitamin is produced in the skin when ultraviolet rays with a spectrum of B (for example, the sun) fall into it. This means that the pigment melanin is a kind of barrier that prevents the dermis from assimilating ultraviolet radiation more fully and, accordingly, producing vitamin D. However, albinos cannot be sunbathed due to severe photophobia.
4. Albino animals are not uncommon
A defective recessive gene can be found not only in humans, but also in mammals, reptiles, birds, and other representatives of the fauna. Of course, like people, it is more difficult for such animals to get along with relatives - they do not accept the outlandish representative in their flock. And albino animals are unlucky with predators, since a noticeable coloration makes them unprofitable against the background of other relatives and the surrounding world as a whole. In addition, females mainly choose the most “colored” representatives, and the depigmented one will be paid attention at the last moment. Interestingly, animals have an albinism antagonist disease called melanism. In this case, representatives of the prevailing dark pigment color.
3. Albinism does not require treatment
Despite the fact that albinism is a disease - it does not require treatment. Albinos lead a full-fledged lifestyle, in physiological and psychological development they do not differ from others, live to average, according to statistics, years. Another thing is that people with albinism often show concomitant symptoms and pathologies that just require competent therapy. This is photophobia, and pathology of the organs of vision, and impaired hemostasis. Separately, it is worth mentioning the problems of the skin - and this is a tendency to allergies, hypersensitivity, dermatitis, a high risk of cancer processes. Vaccines or treatments for albinism have not yet been invented, as they have not learned how to intervene in the genetic code of an already born person.
2. Albinism is most common in Africa
Statistics say that people with albinism are about 6 times more likely to appear among the African people. So for 3 thousand inhabitants there is 1 albino. Pathology is more common in East Africa, and reaches the highest concentration in Tanzania (on average there are 15 times more albinos here than in any other region of the world, that is, somewhere around 1 person per 1.4 thousand). In Burundi and Kenya, the ratio of albinos to ordinary people averages 1 to 5 thousand. Scientists cannot name the exact reason why there is such a spread.
1. Persecution of albino people
Various rumors have long been spread about people with this pathology. Against the backdrop of superstitions, warlocks hunted them, wanting to get a part of the body, supposedly endowed with special power. Other people, on the contrary, considered albinos to be almost god-healers who could eliminate human troubles. According to rumors, in Tanzania on the black market the price of an albino limb can reach 75 thousand dollars. In the media and culture, the theme of albinism is often ridiculed or exposed as socially dangerous, inferior, and underdeveloped.
A modern person, with knowledge of albinism, can try to support people, help them adapt in society, and organize jobs. Be more human in relation to your neighbor.