Michael Jackson's son's vitiligo became a controversial topic back in 2010, when a photograph of Prince Michael spot white patches of skin spread like wildfire on the internet.
While it wasn't all that surprising since he is Michael Jackson's son, vitiligo was still a controversial issue for the family as the legendary pop singer maintained suffering from the rare skin condition even up to his death bed despite rumors that his skin color may have been caused by something more artificial.
Although there has been no official announcement from the singer's family, the possibility of Michael Jackson's suffering from vitiligo still remains as it is an autoimmune disease that can be passed on from generation to generation.
The controversial picture was taken during a 2010 Hawaiian vacation where it was revealed that Prince Michael, had white patches of skin under his arm. The white patches were made visible when he wore swim trunks, triggering rumors that the skin-bleaching disorder could be the real cause.
Michael Jackson had attested the vitiligo was the cause behind the slow but steady lightening of his own skin. With Prince Michael, who was then 13 years old, started displaying symptoms of the disease, this may have convinced people who questioned the paternity of Jackson's children that he really was the teenager's biological father.
However, some skeptics such as Dr. Doris Day of Lenox Hill Hospital reasoned that while vitiligo is indeed an autoimmune disease, it doesn't mean it will always be inherited, according to the Daily News.
"Getting vitiligo because a parent has it could happen," Dr. Day said. "But it's not necessarily a direct correlation."
It's possible for parents to pass down the disease to their children but it was also possible for children of a parent with an autoimmune disorder to have a different condition or none at all.
Autoimmune conditions are described to the diseases where the body attacks itself. The same applies to vitiligo, except in this case, the person's own immune system attacks the melanin in the skin, the same pigment that determines skin color, Dr. Kent Holtorf explained.
"Vitiligo often starts in adolescence or early adulthood," Dr. Holtorf said. "Sometimes just a little virus can set it off."
Do you think Michael Jackson's son suffers from vitiligo like his father?
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