“Let us play together!” is the main theme of celebrating the World Down Syndrome Day organized by Caritas-CCAM this year at Dream Land, Phnom Penh. The aims of World Down Syndrome Day are to promote awareness and understanding, seek international support, and to achieve dignity, equal rights and a better life for people with Down syndrome everywhere.

World Down Syndrome Day takes place on 21 March every year. This date (21/3) represents the 3 copies of chromosome 21, which is unique to people with Down syndrome. This year is the third time that Caritas-CCAMH celebrating this event with the participation of 40 children togther with 40 parents.

During the ceremony, children had time to play games with their friends and parents happily. Moreover, our program provided them food and drink for joining this event too.

Sok dearozet, program manager of Caritas-CCAMH told that our program teaches children with down syndrome the activities of daily living such as bathing, toileting, dressing, eating, transferring and cleaning. Furthermore, the program also offers the training on number, literature, color and movement to those.

“After had been trained at CCAMH, my daughter had been getting better. The treatment at CCAMH is very effectively,” said Huoy Huong, 54, is a seller from Phnom Penh. She added that now her daughter listen to her and learns a lot more compare to before. Her daughter even won a completion in Hong Kong and got a gold medal and got 700$ from Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Down syndrome occurs in about 1 in 740 newborns. Although women of all ages can have a child with Down syndrome, the chance of having a child with this condition increases as a woman gets older.

People with Down syndrome may be born with a variety of birth defects. About half of all affected children have a heart defect. Digestive abnormalities, such as a blockage of the intestine, are less common.

Individuals with Down syndrome have an increased risk of developing several medical conditions. These include gastro esophageal reflux, which is a backflow of acidic stomach contents into the esophagus, and celiac disease, which is an intolerance of a wheat protein called gluten.