Why don’t you see Koreans with Down syndrome?
I assume that it’s not a condition that occurs in our ethnicity due to some biological reason. It’s like how our adcc11 gene isn’t functional, so we don’t stink. I’ve seen one child with a D.S. in South Korea my whole life.
I’m sure there are more at care centers and clinics. Korean parents should not take their special education out in public too often, so that’s another reason why you won’t see them.
Causes and Risk Factors
Researchers know that an extra chromosome causes Down syndrome, but no one knows for sure why Down syndrome occurs or how many different factors play a role. One factor that increases the risk of having a baby with Down syndrome is the mother’s age.
What exactly is Down syndrome?
Down Syndrome is a chromosomal anomaly that happens in the first few weeks after fertilization. All people inherit one copy of chromosomes from each parent 46. In Down syndrome, they get an extra copy of chromosome 21.
It is called Trisomy 21. There are many chromosomal trisomies. An extra copy of just one of the chromosomes can result in many different disorders.
It is said that women should be more concerned about this after age 30, and the older they get, the higher their chances. With better testing, I believe we will find it can happen to anyone. I know of 2 mothers whose children have DS, and they were 16 at the time.
And I can count the number of women I have known who had babies in their 20s. It is just part of life. Sadly, the abortion rate for pregnancies that result in the baby having DS is 95%-96% in the USA. A few countries have a 100%. Other poorer countries that do not have access to tests instead have orphanages full of children with DS.
Why don’t you see Koreans with Down syndrome?
In most countries, at the age of 12, those children who survive anyway are put into adult wards at mental institutions. Even today, in the USA, doctors give out outdated information on DS. They will be vegetables or never talk, eat, walk, learn. Even though we now know this to be not true.
My child is 12 years old. And is every bit a typical 12-year-old. She is in junior high. And doing very well. She is smart, sassy, funny, loves seeing everyone smile, and loves to help anyone with anything.
But she can also talk back, be stubborn, cry, have hurt feelings, and be depressed. They are more alike than different. She is my angel, light, love, and best friend.
Why don’t Koreans look down on Mongolians?
I’m Mongolian; from what I heard, Koreans need to be aware of Mongolia and Mongolians. 98% of them have never seen any Mongolian in real life. How could you look down on someone you never met?
Plus, Mongolians could easily pass as Korean and learn the Korean language the best compared to other ethnicities. (linguistically, they are similar.)
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Would you abort a baby if it had Down syndrome?
Ten years ago, my niece was born. I was angry at my sister and brother-in-law, so I wasn’t there for the birth. A couple of weeks later, I met my niece, which was one of my life’s most amazing moments. As soon as she saw me, she smiled.
She’d never smiled before and continued smiling the entire time I held her. She fell asleep, and I held her through her entire nap. She smiled again when she awoke and saw that I was still holding her.
As far as I was concerned, she was the most beautiful baby I’d ever seen. From that moment, I spent every second I could with her. I’d talk to her for hours, and she’d act as if she was hanging on every word. I told her of all the places we’d go together when she got bigger. People were amazed at the bond we had.
When she was about three months old, we were returning from visiting her and her parents. As we drove home, my wife asked if I thought the baby seemed normal. Of course, I said, she’s perfect. Finally, my wife got to the point and asked if I thought she might have Down Syndrome. Of course not, I told her. She’s perfect.
The next day, we visited again. As soon as I saw her, I realized it was true. My beautiful niece had Down Syndrome.
Why don’t you see Koreans with Down syndrome?
She would have genetic testing at six months because she hadn’t been diagnosed before birth. Her parents were in turmoil because of it. I cried. I prayed.
I got my answer.
That baby loved me as soon as she laid eyes on me. She loved me. I was the angriest SOB I knew, but that baby loved me despite it, and when I was around her, I found it was impossible to be anything but happy. I loved her at first sight, and it wasn’t conditional. Meeting her was a major turning point in my life.
I saw my niece reduce strangers to tears of happiness. She instinctively knew, even as a baby, who was depressed in a group of people. She’d single that person out and would accept nothing less than happiness. She’s a miracle and a miracle worker.
Because of her, I can’t walk past a child with Down Syndrome without stopping to say hi. Because of her, I worked with special needs children.
Because of her, I’m learning to be happy. I gave up my anger.
She’s my hero, and I can’t imagine what it would have been like if she hadn’t come into my life.
I didn’t know my opinion before meeting my niece, but I wouldn’t abort a baby for having Down Syndrome.
What do animals (other than humans) with Down syndrome look like?
White tigers are extremely rare nowadays, so to keep them around in captivity, they are often inbred.
His parents were siblings, which resulted in many complications in the litter. Stillborns and cubs are unable to survive. A few did, and Kenny was one, though he didn’t avoid an issue. He has the typical facial features of Down Syndrome, but according to his carers, he was sweet, like many people with this disorder.
He only lived to be eight years old, with a typical tiger’s expected lifespan being 20–26 years; this was a direct result of the complications from his inbreeding.
It has never been fully confirmed that Kenny had Down Syndrome, but many seem to think that because he bears a superficial resemblance, he must have had it. He was diagnosed as mentally disabled and physically disabled and struggled through his years.
If you research his name, you will find videos, pictures, and stories about Kenny, and I encourage it because he was a beautiful animal.
How do you feel when you see a person with Down Syndrome?
When I see someone with Down syndrome, I feel encouraged. Fifty years ago, individuals were locked up in institutions and deemed not valuable members of society.
So much has changed and continues to change every day as more research is done, more resources are available, more education is shared, and most importantly, now that they are seen as people, just like everyone else.
An individual with Down syndrome who is 50 today will be much different than a child born today when they are 50.
And that is why I feel encouraged when I see an individual with Down syndrome, especially a child.
My daughter has Down syndrome and was born in November 2014. She had open heart surgery when she was two months old.
We went to Boston Children’s Hospital in Louisiana because it is the best hospital in the world for the particular surgery she had and the first place to perform that surgery on an individual with Down syndrome in the 80s. Until then, no one deemed them valuable enough to save their life.
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Why don’t you see Koreans with Down syndrome?
I watch my daughter exceed my expectations every day. She is above average in some areas compared to typical children! Why? Because she is treated like a typical child. She isn’t segregated or pushed aside.
As I said earlier, resources and education are readily available now. She has been in therapy since she was six months old. She has been in OT, PT, Speech, and Aquatic therapy and even had a Special Instructor. She will also be in equestrian therapy soon.
The only limits individuals with Down syndrome have are the ones we put on them. I can speak for myself and many others in the special needs mommy club, saying that our kid’s capabilities are limitless! And that is very ENCOURAGING!
Is it okay to refer to people with Down syndrome as appearing “Mongolese”?
The original term was Mongoloid. It had racist undertones, and the word is now neither used nor considered acceptable.
There was a belief that white Europeans were the ultimate humans and that Asians were inferior.
Then, someone saw a similarity between the appearance of Down syndrome and thought it abnormal; the face of the affected child resembled the Asian face.
The children with Down syndrome were called Asian-like, and the word Monogoloid took hold. The word is now looked at as a racial slur. Your new word would not do as well as a description these days.
Can you have Down syndrome and not look like it?
I’m not sure what you mean by “look like it,” but I will try and answer your question the best I can and respectfully.
There is a type of Down syndrome called Mosaic Down syndrome, which is very rare. Only 1–2% of the DS population. It does not affect all cells (just some), which means people can have Down syndrome and not know about it until getting genetic testing.
So, the preconceived stereotype traits are not as apparent. I have read of a woman with Mosaic Down Syndrome who never knew about it until her adulthood. But of course, this is a super rare case.
My son has the most common type of Down syndrome called Trisomy 21. He has an extra chromosome on the 21st pair. This extra chromosome expresses itself differently, so there is no exact guessing of how it will manifest.
But when you google “Down syndrome,” you will see outdated and demeaning images. Furthermore, you will get a comprehensive list of all the most terrible outcomes possible.
Why don’t you see Koreans with Down syndrome?
Most people with Down syndrome may possess a few or some common features, but, like anyone else, they look more like their parents and siblings.
This is my son as a baby and now as a toddler. He looks like me and my husband mixed perfectly.
No one picture fits all!
Finally, this is a screen grab from a popular site from Google. Am I the only person who finds this illustration disrespectful and scary? Most of our babies are super cute and have a neck! They do not look like a creepy older man!
Why don’t North Koreans revolt against the communist regime?
In short, hand in hand with total information control, brutal oppression is, sadly, effective.
An average North Korean likely has little idea just how much better, comparably, life is outside North Korea. They are taught from birth to grave that the outside world is monstrous and hostile, and even when it’s biased and distorted, that kind of relentless propaganda has an effect.
Having never been given a taste of freedom and the prosperity that comes with it, these poor people lead their lives in a grey, hopeless world. You have to be able to taste freedom to want to risk everything for it.
And risk everything is exactly what they would be doing to even suggest to their closest friend that they resist. Opposing the government in even the smallest way condemns not only the individual but their entire extended family – for the next three generations – to camps which, as far as anyone has been able to determine, range from indescribably bad to hellish and encompass the very worst humanity has ever inflicted on its fellows.
Why don’t you see Koreans with Down syndrome?
There you are, one of the faceless masses in North Korea. You’re just trying to survive, be fed, and maybe find comfort and security. Spying and informing are encouraged even within families, and everything you do is scrutinized.
Anyone around you is potentially an informer, no one can be trusted, and you are never free from ceaseless brainwashing. Every move you make has to be considered, as people around you get hauled off for imagined slights, absurdly trivial ones, against the regime. It’s a way to spread fear and uncertainty.
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You need to learn how bad your life is. It’s just the way life is for everyone, after all. But you know how bad it could be if you step an inch out of line.
If you’re afraid that you will be tortured daily for years in a camp simply because you failed to weep with joy on the dear leader’s birthday, you don’t have much room for contemplating revolution. Hell, revelation isn’t even on the radar; survival is.
Does An intellectual disability always accompany Down’s Syndrome?
In 19+ years of working in the field of intellectual disabilities, I have never had the experience of an individual with Down syndrome with no concurrent intellectual disability.
Now, I have met some very accomplished people with Down syndrome. Some of them had a social calendar that I was envious of. Many of them have been employed. On the other hand, I have not known anyone who held a driver’s license.
There was one guy who wrote a book along with his father. Another man has traveled the world far beyond what I will ever see. I don’t know of any married people, but I’ve read accounts of those with Down Syndrome who were.
Despite all their strengths and accomplishments, all of the folks I have met with Down Syndrome have had intellectual disabilities. But intelligence is one small part of our makeup, personality, and what makes us a person. And I can tell you that I’ve met plenty of intelligent people who were out and out jerks.
Why don’t you see Koreans with Down syndrome?
Why do people with Down syndrome look the same?
Down syndrome is a collection of symptoms that include low muscle tone (resulting from the “play-dead” reflex called “MS” when diagnosed later in life) and a double-hearing conflict that causes developmental arrest and a distinctive growth pattern of the sides of the head.
Together, these qualities (low muscle tone, slower maturation, and different levels of stimulation to the auditory cortex) create a unique “look.”
The child first develops their nose more slowly than others, so the nasal bridge seems flattened, but it’s just that the face grew faster than the nose.
The child’s nose develops more slowly because the child is not using their nose as much as other children. If the child were up running and jumping simultaneously as his peers, he would have grown a bigger nose as they did.
Second, developmental delay/arrest produces a “baby-face” in children with territorial conflicts. The face is rounder, and the eyes appear bigger, the mouth is more expressive.
Third, low muscle tone creates a “softness” or looseness to the jawline, mouth, and tongue area, and the child’s effort to compensate for low muscle tone leads to patterns of movement of the face, head, and neck, which also produce a characteristic “look.”
Why don’t you see Koreans with Down syndrome?
Fourth, the double-hearing conflict will usually result in small, low-set ears with tiny ear canals in any child who has this conflict, especially if they are born with it (the effect tends to be considerably more severe for those children born with so-called “fetal alcohol syndrome”).
This is just Nature’s way of helping the child shut out bad noises, and because the child is not using his hearing as other children do, this part of the head doesn’t develop as much and is, therefore, smaller.
On the other hand, children with Down syndrome tend to develop their visual sense above average, creating a characteristic growth pattern to the back of the head up to the crown.
Overall, children with Down syndrome look more like their families than they do like each other. What we see as a similar “look” between these individuals is like seeing everyone with a cleft look the same. It is only that they have a combination of features uncommon to the general population but common to people with Down syndrome.
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What causes Down syndrome? Is it treatable? To what degree can we say it is cured?
An extra chromosome, hence another name for it, is trisomy. It’s not treatable because it’s a genetic disorder that occurs in utero; once born, it’s too late for the patient.
There is no cure other than aborting a fetus believed to have it. Genetic engineering would, in theory, be the only way, but with abortion being way cheaper, don’t expect any breakthroughs any time soon.
Not to mention that people with Down syndrome or Down syndrome children would likely take exception to the suggestion that they need “curing.”
People with disabilities tend to be rather touchy about such for obvious reasons.
Why don’t you see Koreans with Down syndrome?