Inbreeding and Diabetes in Norfolk, UK
August 14, 2006 by Lei
Filed under Genetic Diseases and Conditions
Rob at Diabetes Notes has already written about Dr. Ian Gibson’s comment on BBC Radio that the higher incidence of type 1 diabetes in Norfolk, UK may be partially explained by inbreeding. The Spoof! has more.
Dr Gibson, 67, stood by his comments yesterday, to achieve this he had them enlarged and placed on a poster, and insisted that he had not meant to cause offence. “If you have a high frequency of genes with a predisposition to type 1 diabetes, then you have to ask why that is,” he said.
“I am not talking about incest or anything like that. But it is the case that people in past generations did not move around so much and would have had relationships in their own communities.
“Inbreeding is one of those things that nobody can talk about because it brings up images of mutants, much like the X men except uglier — but that is not the case. Norfolk people are really no different to those in other areas of the country, just stupider and uglier.
“My purpose in bringing this up is not to denigrate anyone but to try to understand why there is a high rate of diabetes among children in Norfolk.”
The Spoof! disclaimer - “The story as represented above is written as a satire or parody. It is fictitious.”
Technorati Tags: genetics, genes, disease, inbreeding, type 1 diabetes, diabetes, ian gibson, health, illness
