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A member asked:
Is it safe for a man to marry his first cousin if they don't have any diseases running in their family.genetic defects in offspring?
4 doctors weighed in across 2 answers
Riskier: Higher chance of inheriting abnormal genes from from parents that otherwise would be present only in one chromosome and since they are recessive do not manifest somatically.
Answered 2/10/2014
4.5k views
No: The fact that no disease runs in the family doesn't confer "immunity" to you or your relative when you marry. The problem is that you and her may carry certain similar genes that are suppressed by other genes but the two faulty genes come together, they cause the disease that was otherwise inactive, to become active.
Answered 4/8/2016
4.5k views
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