Upset by tonights Dispatches - cousin marriages

[MumNWLondon]

AIBU to think that in the light of the known health risks of cousin marriages there are has not been a nation wide campaign alerting people of the risks.

Just watched Dispatches and cousin marriages.

Salient points:

• massive increased risks of children with genetic conditions with cousin marriages - 700 affected babies born each year
• something like British pakistanis have 1/3 of children with genetic diseases yet they are only 1.5% of population
• can't do genetic testing as only 40% of things can even be tested for. with cousin marriage new gene mutations result in genetic conditions
• each child can cost NHS £250k per year
• very little awareness for fear of being "racist" (although same issues would affect non muslims too)

Of course lots of people on program saying well my parents are cousins and i am healthy. of course they are, it just increases risks a lot, doesn't mean they'll def have disabled children.

I know of a truly delightful couple, married with 8 children. They are first cousins. 6 of their children have an incurable genetic disease entirely due to their parents' consanguinity. Those children are not going to live beyond 25 years old. That's 6 children out of 8.

Don't forget that the risk of 1 in 4 is for each child, not that for every 4 kids you risk one having a problem.

Each individual child has a 1 in 4 chance of having an incurable - sometimes deadly - genetic disease.

My DH is from East Africa and all his brothers and sisters are married to 1st cousins. Most of the children are fine but one is blind and one has some kind of physical disibility and is blind. We watched this programme together and I wanted him to watch it because it is such an ingrained cultural thing and he doesn't believe there is anything wrong with marrying your first cousin, well he may be rethinking now but he said it comes from wanting to keep things ie money in the family and people do it cos they know then who their sons and daughters are marrying. It is not right though in my opinion, not when you have the same grandparents.