Every year on June 13, the world celebrates a young but important event – International Albinism Awareness Day. The relevant date was set by the United Nations in 2015.

What is albinism?

Albinism (hypopigmentation) is a congenital defect consisting in partial (vitiligo) or complete absence of skin, hair and eye pigment (melanin). People with this disorder are called albinos. They have red eyes, often vision problems, very fair skin and hair.

• Albinos extremely sensitive to the sun, their body synthesizes vitamin D 5 times faster.

Why does albinism occur?

It is necessary to know that albinism occurs due to a cellular failure, therefore a person is not to blame for the existence of such a defect (in regions of Africa, society is intolerant of albinos, because it believes that the father of such a child is a man with white skin).

Purpose of Albinism Awareness Day

Albinism Awareness Day aims to draw the attention of mankind to the problem of discrimination of people with albinism, involvement in solving this problem, raising public awareness of albinism and its causes.

• World statistics report that 1 child in 20,000 is born with albinism, and one person in seventy has the albinism gene.

The most famous personalities with vitiligo: iconic singer Michael Jackson and model Winnie Harlow.