Wednesday, August 06, 2008 Literatus: Wintry skin strips By Zosimo T. Literatus, R.M.T. Breakthroughs
DEMOCRACY may be better than tyranny, but nevertheless it is not free from its own evils.
Professor R. A. Pinker, in his book Dependency, observed: “The imposition of stigma is the commonest form of violence used in democratic societies.”
In fact, as uncommon a skin disease as vitiligo could be reason enough for societies to impose stigma on any ill-fated soul.
Vitiligo is a long-standing skin disease caused by loss of functioning melanocytes (pigment-producing cells) resulting to loss of pigment. It appears as irregular pale patches of skin much like a topographic map of wintry land strips.
It affects only one to four percent of the world population, but the resulting disfigurement has caused mental illness in 16 to 35 percent of those affected.
These conditions include depression (10 percent), dysthymia (1 to 9 percent), sleep disturbances (20 percent), suicidal thoughts (10 percent), suicidal attempts (3.3 percent), and anxiety. This is especially true for dark skinned people where the pale patch of skin contrast can be very radical.
In some cultures, stigma was attached to having vitiligo. It was believed that people who were affected were evil, and must be shunned in the community. Worse, it was confused with leprosy, further stigmatizing persons affected.
A review of treatments for vitiligo, conducted by Orest Szczuko and Heather Boon, found that synthetic and natural health products report efficacy that was seriously weakened by poor methodological quality.
Both researchers work at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy in the University of Toronto, Canada.
Results, published in the BMC Dermatology in May, show that the use of topical steroids poses risk in long-term side effects.
Phototherapy (using UV light A or B) has caused blistering, raising fears on its risk for skin cancer.
L-phenylalanine, traditional Chinese medicinal herbs, and oral vitamin E have been reported effective but seriously flawed for lack of methodical quality. No evidence of efficacy was found with oral cobalamin (1000 mcg twice daily) and folic acid (5 mg twice daily).
Only Ginkgo biloba shows moderate evidence of effectiveness that satisfies sound scientific requirements of a clinical trial. However, there were reports on nausea and gastrointestinal complaints with its use.
Wiser people are often oblivious of stigma. As Kathie Lee Gifford said: “I felt no stigma whatsoever in becoming the third Mrs. Gifford.”
Stigma is a problem of perception. If you can’t change society, ignore it to the extent that you can live your life peacefully enough to co-exist.
