Largest Study Of Its Kind Finds Both Cousin Marriage And Older Mothers Double Risk Of Birth Defects

Marriage between first cousins can more than double the risk of giving birth to a baby with a congenital anomaly (eg, heart and lung defects, Down syndrome), although the absolute risk is low, according to a multiethnic study of more than 11300 babies from the city of Bradford in the UK, published in The Lancet. The high level of consanguineous marriage (marriage between blood relatives) within the large Pakistani community in the study* accounted for nearly a third (31%) of birth defects in babies of Pakistani origin...
Source: Health News from Medical News Today - Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Pregnancy / Obstetrics Source Type: news