Almost 1 percent of the world's population has vitiligo. When you have vitiligo, the cells that are responsible for your skin color are destroyed. These cells, called melanocytes no longer produce skin pigment called melanin. Once the cells no longer produce melanin, areas of your skin will lose color or turn white. Areas of lost of pigment can develop anywhere on your body, including; Sun exposed areas like the hands, feet, arms and face. 2. inside the mouth or other mucus membranes.3. Nostrils.4. Nostrils.5.back of the eye and finally within the hearing system of the ear. Your hair may also turn grey or white if these areas involved have hair. Even though vitiligo can affect many different parts of the body, it's not contagious. A person with vitiligo can't transmit it to someone else. The primary symptoms of vitiligo is white patches on the skin. And it can affect any area of the body , even the areas around your eyes. These patches can be small or large and appear as one of the following patterns: 1. Segmental or focal: white patches tend to be smaller and appear in one or a few areas. When vitiligo appears in a focal or segmental pattern, it tends to stay in one area one side of the body. 2. Non segmental or generalized: Widespread white patches appear symmetrically on both sides of the body. This is the most common pattern and can affect pigment cells anywhere on the body. Study shows that 75 percent of people with vitiligo have loss of pigment on the hands and face. Other common areas are in body folds like the skin under your arms and around your groin. Treatments for vitiligo aim to restore color balance to your skin. Some treatments aim to add pigment while others remove it. Your options will vary according to 1. The severity of your condition 2. The location and size of the patches 3. How many patches you have etc. The types of treatments includes; Medical, surgical or combination of both. But not all treatments works for everyone and some may cause unwanted side effects. Research shows that people with vitiligo tend to develop issue around emotional stress and self-esteem. One study also found that parents of children with vitiligo report lower quality of life. But vitiligo isn't contagious nor does it cause any negative physical effect. People with vitiligo can live a healthy and active life.