BANGALORE, INDIA, November 5, 2002: Fear of genetic disease is forcing traditional South Indian couples to seek their geneticist’s medical wisdom to sift through family history and match their genes. More than 15 per cent of the population of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu seek a match from within the family. For the purpose of keeping their wealth within the family these marriages have become the highest in India. Geneticists say the chances are high of conditions such as Down’s syndrome, other forms of mental retardation and autism being passed on to children when relatives marry.
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