Is it true that biracial or multiracial kids have a higher likelihood of suffering from gene defects?

Question

that is what my human dev. psychologist teacher said. she said especially that black and white mixed kids have a lot of behavioral and cognitive defects. I notice this too, that they're very bad behaved. I also notice that half-white, half-asian kids have a lot of visible abnormalities.

i'm not saying i agree with her. i think she might be wrong. i just dont know why she would say that except she says she has the data to back it up

no this is a true story that happened a few quarters ago. i remember being really surprised when she said it, because it was such a blunt statement in front of like 50 people. i think she was racist though. she made racist comments a lot. my boyfriend said that when two races combine, they tend to produce a stronger combination because the child can take strengths from each race. which counteracted what my teacher said. so i thought i'd just ask. she is working on her PhD though.

Answer 1

Your teacher is full of sh!t.

Multiracial children are actually LESS likely to suffer genetic defects. The genes for most genetic disorders are recessive, and are more typically found in higher concentrations within a homogeneous population.

Think of the problems that are frequent among small groups of "inbreeders." A classic example of this is hemophilia. Hemophilia used to be known as a "royal" disease, because it was so frequent among royal families--families which confined themselves to a small genetic pool.

When the genetic pool is expanded, undesireable traits become less common because even if the gene for hemophilia (for example) is passed on, it can be overridden by a dominant gene for normal blood clotting.\

Marriages between different "races" are a good thing, genetically speaking. If the couple is able to overcome cultural differences, and provide a stable, nurturing home environment for their offspring, then their children will be doubly blessed.

Answer 2

My uneducated belief is that you are wrong. I do not think such is the case. I'll look into this to find any evidence to indicate otherwise however...
I have had many friends of many races and backgrounds and I have seen even 'pure' bloods behave poorly. This is due to poor parenting and not genes. You may want to ask a second opinion other than this forum.

http://csbchome.org/?p=5
Went to look for information on this defect of which you spoke. According to this website genetic defects are 'less' prevalent in biracial children (that includes psychological). I went to your yahoo answers page and noticed your a psych. student. Was this to test peoples responses to your questions?

Answer 3

From a biology stand point biracial kids have the least chance of getting genetic defects than kids of the same race in the same way that incest creates more kids with genetic defects. People of the same race are more likely to have similar genetic mutations and therefore a higher risk of having kids who inherit a homozygous gene with that defect vs a heterozygous form of the genetic defect.
Your observations tell me 2 things:
1. You have decided that biracial kids have more genetic defects and therefore that is what you see. In other words you are looking for biracial kids with genetic defects and that's what you are finding. I have not noticed that at all and i work in the medical field
2. Behaviour defects is a product of people's upbringing, environment and society. What you are saying now is contributing to a behavioural defect in biracial kids. You are telling them there is something wrong with them because they are biracial and for people without a strong identity, they can buy into that. It's even worse in schools when biracial kids are made fun of etc. I was a kid with a behavioural problem (and i am not biracial) but my problems stemmed from the fact that i never felt accepted like i was, i was not allowed to be myself and most people i met felt there was something wrong with me.
I find that biracial children are very beautiful. Really very attractive and are really the children of the future. Stop contributing to discrimination by asking such biased questions. You are contributing to the problem

Answer 4

Firstly, can you separate genetic "behavioral and cognitive defects" from social ones? If your teacher has finally cracked nature verses nurture, I'm amazed he's working in a school.

Secondly, what do you define as "visible abnormalities".

Answer 5

I'm no doctor ,but i say no. No gene defects. If they're closely related(brother and sister or first cousins) that's another story. Incest is not cool in any way.

Answer 6

As far as the behavior that is form the parents, but as far as evolution goes, they are expanding their gene pool and should be better off then people continually dipping into the same pool. Sorry for the run-on sentence.

Answer 7

Your teacher needs to be fired and put on the news all across

america for her ignorant statements.

Answer 8

No way. I have two cousin that are biracial and they are fine. I have two biracial friends and they are fine too. i think that you should ask you teacher for her information on this study

Answer 9

i am biracial, and i can tell you that that's not true! if it were, me and most of the people in my family should be sickly, but we are not. half black and half white kids are not for the most part 'very bad behaved'. i think that you and your teacher are very stupid, ignorant, close minded people that need a reality check!!! you should be ashamed of yourself for asking that question!!

Answer 10

Research has proven the exact opposite. It's a quick google, check it out---- www.google.com