I wasn’t there over two thousand years ago when the baby was born. Eye doctors don’t usually assist at childbirth! The doctors who attend to women in labour are called Obstetricians and there were none at the time the baby was born. To attend to births were traditional birth attendants.

Sadly this baby had neither the luxury of a respectable place to be born nor a traditional attendant to attend to his birth. He was born in a lowly place where livestock is raised.
What are the health implications to the baby and his mother in what would be considered an inappropriate and undesirable place to have a baby? The greatest danger to both is infection particularly tetanus.

The organism causing Tetanus is found in the soil and even more plentiful in cow dung. It is a deadly disease which almost invariably results in death after an agonising period. Both mother and child are also prone to developing other equally debilitating infections with dreadful complications.

Of particular note is the infection in the eyes especially of the new born. Purulent infections of the conjunctiva which ultimately affect the cornea can cause the cornea to be literarily eaten up within 48 hours with severe and irreparable damage to the eyes and blindness.

One of the major complications of infections of the cornea is the development of corneal opacities. Corneal diseases are a leading cause of childhood blindness in our country and come behind cataract as a cause of blindness in all age groups. This wonderful child had none of these. He also escaped infections of his skin, lungs and ears.

What would I have seen if I had examined this extraordinary baby at birth? What would his eyes have looked like? The eyes would have looked radiant with dark blue eyes as a Caucasian. Most Caucasian babies are born with dark blue eyes. The true eye colour, be it brown, green, hazel or blue may not reveal itself until a few months later.  If he were African or Asian, the eyes would be dark grey or brown at birth, becoming a true brown or black after the first six months.

As we celebrate the birth of this marvellous baby, Emmanuel, I am reminded of the second birthday party of a child I attended years ago. About 20 parents and a good number of children were present. The celebrant hardly understood what it was all about. He was interested in the cake right from the onset but they wouldn’t let him touch the cake because it wasn’t yet time for the ritual of the cutting of the cake.

He wanted to run around with his friends but that was not allowed because they would turn everything upside down! He cried and cried and could not be comforted. Finally he slept off and the adults went on with the party. When it was time to cut the cake, he was woken up to perform the task.

I couldn’t help wondering who really was having a celebration! Certainly the adults were! Have we ever wondered how children would love to celebrate their birthdays? I happen to know how this great child who defied all odds would like his birthday to be celebrated. He would want a modest celebration with attention to the needs of the children; of the poor around us and those who have no one to help them. The boy will probably stay quietly in one corner and watch us celebrate.

Every minute, a child goes blind. 60 per cent of children die within one year of going blind. 50 per cent of childhood blindness is avoidable. 75 per cent of all blindness is avoidable given the right treatment. That means that 45 million people around the world are blind as a result of conditions that could either have been prevented or could be cured. And a total of 314 million suffer from some form of visual impairment.

Right here in Nigeria there are over 500,000 persons in urgent need of cataract surgery so that they can see. Let us think about them this Christmas and do something. Let us make the celebrations meaningful to the “little” child as we make merry.

The best gifts are for those who don’t expect anything in return or even mutter “thank you.” I wish you a merry and spiritually rewarding Christmas.

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