Cousins' DNA -- What will happen it you are pregnant with your cousin's baby?

Question

What is in the DNA of cousins that will cause their kids to have birth defects? Is this just an old wive's tale? I'm sorry I just don't understand how it works. I thought human beings all pretty much have the same DNA so what difference does it make whether you marry your cousin or someone who isn't related to you? Isn't DNA or genetic material all the same?

Answer 1

The baby that is the offspring of two cousins could very well be just fine. People who are related are more likely than the general population to harbor the same recessive alleles for genes that are a problem. This means that their children are more likely than usual to have a problem caused by recessive genes. However, it used to be quite common for people to marry their cousins. In fact, Charles Darwin himself married his cousin Emma Wedgewood. They had many children, and I have not read of any genetic problems with their children. Today, it is widely frowned upon to have children with a near relative like a cousin.

Answer 2

You are absolutely right. The same thing happen with your cousin's DNA which would have happen with any other person's DNA. This is indeed an old wives' tale believed by people much like superstition. Everybody else around the world (except us, of course) practices this and nothing has ever happened. The ancient Egyptians even did it with their siblings to keep the wealth and power in the family. If anything, the European royal families did their cousins all together for the same reason. Everyone one is related to someone or another.

And you are also absolutely right about the difference in the DNA. It has been scientifically proven that the difference between "your cousin" and any other human is so small that it is also immeasurable.

Answer 3

What is in the DNA can be the same things that are in your DNA, which is the inherint problem. All DNA is made of the same base material, however the genetic map of each person is unique. In relatives, certain strands, combinations and patterns emerge that are similiar and coded to certain genetic traits (eye color, hair color, etc etc etc). Now the problem with having a child with a relative, even cousins, is the increased probability of genetic anomolies. This can stem from persons both carrying recessive genes or genetic abnormalies that are nonfunctioning in themselves have a greater chance of showing up in offspring. Could these anomlies show up anyway? Absolutely. There exists the possibility, though often extremely improbable, of all genetic abnormalities occuring in any person, however because of genetic complexity, the chances of occurance are minimal at best. Having a child with a relative simply makes the genetic possibility of abnormalities arising higher because a number of similiar, related, DNA sequences will inevitably correspond and make a situation where patterns occur more frequently.

Answer 4

If your DNA was the same as the next person's, you'd have the same hair colour, eye colour, height, skin tone, etc. DNA is even more different than snowflakes -- everyone's is different.

But DNS between family members is much more similar than DNA of strangers. If you breed with a family member ("inbreeding"), certain "traits" are likely to be expressed that we consider birth defects. These are called "homozygotes".

The thing is, we *all* have the potential to breed poorly -- generate defective children. But when two people with the same "hidden" defect breed together, the chances increase tremendously that the defect will actually happen in their offspring.

It's hard to explain without jargon -- if genetics were easy, everybody would understand it.

Just trust me on this one -- don't have a kid with your cousin. Marry as far *outside* your family as possible. Check out the Wikipedia page on "incest" while you're at it.

Answer 5

It's a risk. First cousins are more likely than random pairs to share dangerous recessive alleles. That would give you a one in four chance of producing a child with the trait expressed. That's just one trait.

As has been pointed out, Charles Darwin married his first cousin Emma Wedgewood. Further, the Darwins and Wedgewoods had been intermarrying for generations. So, it can work out well. On the other hand, there are interbred families like the Kalikaks, the Jukes, and the Jackson Whites, in which the inbreeding has had deleterious effects.

While inbreeding is practiced with domestic animals, it too can lead to problems such as hip displasia.

You pays yer money and yeh takes yer chances.

Answer 6

Makes me think of the song "I'm my own GrandPa"

First cousins are more distant than
BrotherxSister
ChildXParent.
If you or your cousin do not have any genetic disorders
or they don't run in your family.
You probably don't have anything to worry about.

It is more of a social taboo than biological risk.

Second cousins are often called "kissing cousins".
They are far enough apart biologically and socially.

My dad's 70 year-old cousin got married recently to his 70 year -old first cousin.
My dad jokes: Howz yur "F****** Cousin"

As they say down south.
Ya gotta be able to out run your cousin
and out talk you father.

Assuming you two get married.
If you have to divorce in the future.
Might put strain on the entire family.
You can't call your cousin's mom a B**** and dad a SOB.

Answer 7

a friend of mine told me that her two of her husbands first cousins got married and went on to have three beautiful normal children, with 3.5 and 4.0 gpa's. So dont worry. It seems you will have more to worry about being married to your cousin then the normalcy of your children. If people give you a hard time, tell them to go to Hell, you CANT HELP THE IGNORANCE OF CLOSE MINDED PEOPLE.

Answer 8

The following things will happen:

1.) You will be slapped by your mother.
2.) Your baby will have a higher risk of birth defects.

It's just because the genetic makeup is so similar in people who are related, so they inherit (sp?) the bad traits and mutated genes x2.

Although I think this can easily be resolved by not having your cousin's baby.

Answer 9

For a thorough lecture on DNA, go to www.dnaftb.org

Answer 10

no defects can happen. i live on a farm and we have rabbits and theres certain ways you can breed them to come out all freaky.. im pretty sure it happens in the human species.