Inbreeding Among British Immigrants a Problem that will Work Itself Out

--In A Few Generations or So

"Hi, I'm Mahmoud. This is my brother Abdul
and this is my other brother Abdul."

As if British Muslims didn't have enough to worry about.

There's mosques to build, assimilation to resist, honor killings to carry out--and now, news that the government minister has warned that inbreeding among immigrants is causing a surge in birth defects.

This story was making the rounds a few days ago and we didn't have the time to comment on the latest news that will be sure to spark discussions in the U.K.

But RidesAPaleHorse provided the graphic at the top of the page, so we just had to comment.

Phil Woolas, an environment minister, said the culture of arranged marriages between first cousins was the “elephant in the room”. Woolas, a former race relations minister, said: “If you have a child with your cousin the likelihood is there’ll be a genetic problem.”

The minister, whose views were supported by medical experts this weekend, said: “The issue we need to debate is first cousin marriages, whereby a lot of arranged marriages are with first cousins, and that produces lots of genetic problems in terms of disability [in children].”

Woolas emphasised the practice did not extend to all Muslim communities but was confined mainly to families originating from rural Pakistan. However, up to half of all marriages within these communities are estimated to involve first cousins.

"Hi! My name is Mahmoud. This is my brother
Abdul and this is my other brother Abdul."

There are several problems associated with continued marrying of close relatives.

Inbreeding is breeding between close relatives, whether plant or animal. If practiced repeatedly, it often leads to a reduction in genetic diversity. A concomitant increase in homozygousity of recessive traits can, over time, result in inbreeding depression. This may result in inbred individuals exhibiting reduced health and fitness and lower levels of fertility.

Other problems associated with inbreeding include:
* reduced fertility both in litter size and sperm viability
* increased genetic disorders
* fluctuating facial asymmetry
* lower birth rate
* higher infant mortality
* slower growth rate
* smaller adult size
* loss of immune system function.

At the risk of sounding mindlessly multicultural, sounds like if the British just left things alone, their immigrant problem might just solve itself in a few more generations.

by Mondoreb
idea/images: RidesAPaleHorse;
image: robot guy
Source: Minister worried about inbreeding
* Inbreeding



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