A child who bears little or no resemblance to his or her biological parents should not be a cause for worry or suspicion, as child health and prenatal genetics experts say children can inherit physical traits from grandparents, great-grandparents, and other ancestors, making it normal for some to look strikingly different from their parents.
The leading experts explained physical traits such as height, complexion, facial features, body form, and even behaviour and intellect are determined by a complex combination of genes passed down through multiple generations, meaning a child could legitimately resemble a great-grandparent more than either of their own parents without this indicating any irregularity in their parentage.
In exclusive interviews with PUNCH Healthwise, they noted that while genetics largely determines physical appearance, environmental factors can also influence how certain traits are expressed, further stressing that genes can skip generations and manifest in unexpected ways.
They also asserted that facial resemblance, skin colour or blood group alone are not a reliable basis for questioning a child’s biological relationship with their parents, especially when such a child has one different from their parents, maintaining that only DNA testing can conclusively establish biological parentage.
The child and prenatal genetic specialists urged families to stop using appearance to judge paternity, advising that children should instead be raised in loving environments while genetic testing should only be considered where there is genuine medical or legal justification.
Pregnant women and intending couples concerned about inherited disorders, the experts advised, are to seek genetic counselling and their genotype before marriage in order to reduce the incidence of sickle cell disease.
In Nigeria, when a child is born, questions about the gender and the semblance of the child are usually asked, especially by close relatives.
As the child grows, physical, behavioural and intellectual traits are closely monitored to further determine the child’s resemblance to their parents, close relatives or forebears.
Findings further reveal that children who seem to have a different appearance, such as eye, skin or hair colour, head shape, behaviour, or intellectual capability, begin to have their paternity questioned and, in some cases, may cause stigmatisation for the child.
For example, an Ilorin-based woman, Risikat Azeez, who was born with blue eyes and passed the trait to her daughters, was abandoned by her husband because of the rare trait.
Providing expert insight into the matter, a professor of Paediatrics and Child Health at the University of Jos, Plateau State, Prof Christopher Yilgwan, said it is common for children to inherit genes from several generations of relatives rather than resemble only their parents.
He said, “Not all children look like their parents. Children inherit genes that would have been passed down through generations. And so may look like any of those who contributed to the genes in a variety of ways. Some in behaviour, intellect, height, body form, physical look, etc. Some children may have little from different relatives and may not really look like parents or immediate family members.”
The Chief Medical Director of the Plateau State Specialist Hospital further explained that said no single gene was responsible for how a child looked, noting that appearance was the product of a broad and complex genetic inheritance.
He also explained that resemblance extends beyond facial appearance, stressing, “No single gene is wholly or partly responsible for how a child looks. Looking different is a relative term. I had mentioned that some may inherit height, some weight, some complexion, some facial symmetry or alignment, some eyes, nose, etc.”
Yilgwan, a paediatric cardiologist, advised families against rushing to genetic tests based purely on physical appearance and called instead for a more measured and loving approach to raising children.
The paediatrician said, “My advice is people should stop using appearance to judge. They should focus on raising the child in a loving environment. It’s pointless going for a genetic test without concrete evidence of infidelity. Until we list or have pictures of the family tree on both sides of the family, it’s difficult to conclude by appearance.”
Further providing insight on the matter, a Prenatal Genetics and Fetal Medicine specialist at the University of Ilorin, Kwara State, Prof Ish’aq Abdul, said genes can remain hidden for generations before reappearing in descendants, establishing the fact that physical and non-physical attributes in a child could be traced to ancestors the child never even met.
The clinical genetic counselor said the environment also played a modifying role in how genes were expressed, emphasising that environmental factors could influence genetic change over generations.
The professor said genes from distant ancestors could skip multiple generations before reappearing in a descendant, making it possible for a child to bear a strong resemblance to a great-great-grandparent rather than to their own mother or father.
He further asserted it was common for children to resemble distant relatives.
Abdul said, “Some people may resemble their great, great, great-grandfather. Not just physical appearance, even in behaviour, attributes. It is very common. I don’t know the particular percentage in terms of incidence, but it is common. And you cannot use that, therefore, to judge whether somebody is the legitimate child or not. The only thing that gives legitimacy is DNA testing. So, this is science.”
Addressing the role of blood group in establishing paternity, the researcher in Reproductive Health and Prenatal Genetics said while blood group testing could exclude a man as the father of a child in certain combinations, it could not conclusively confirm paternity.
He said, “For blood groups, it’s got a role, but it is not conclusive. We cannot use blood groups to conclude the biological origin of a child. One thing that blood groups can do, however, is that it can exclude paternity. For instance, if a child is AB, that means that child has got blood group A and B in his or her blood. And if the mother is A, it means the father must be B or AB. So, if the father is now O positive, not having either A or B, having only O, then that person cannot be the father of the AB child. But for you to confirm biological paternity, only DNA testing.”
On inherited disorders, Abdul advised every young adult in Nigeria to know their genotype before choosing a partner, stressing that sickle cell disease could be eliminated over time if carriers avoided marrying each other.
The professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology said, “Every young adult should know their genotype so you don’t bring to this cruel world another sickle cell patient. If you have the sickle cell trait, then please do not marry another person with sickle cell disease or trait because the two of you marry, it will result in sickle cell kids being born. I think the ratio is one out of four.”
Abdul also highlighted the risk of Rhesus factor incompatibility in couples, warning that it could cause anaemia in an unborn child if not detected and managed.
He said advanced technologies such as prenatal genetic screening, embryo selection, gene editing, and non-invasive foetal DNA testing were already available in developed countries and represented the future of managing inherited conditions, even if they remained largely inaccessible in Nigeria due to cost and regulatory limitations.
The gynaecologist called on Nigerians concerned about inherited disorders to consult healthcare professionals rather than rely on appearance or rumour.
He said, “My candid advice would be for parents to speak to doctors who have experience in this aspect of healthcare. You do not need to go for paternity testing to clear your doubts. We should leave paternity testing to be used only when it is really important, for medical-legal reasons. I would not advise anybody, just because of appearance, to begin to doubt the paternity of their child.”
Credit: healthwise.punchng.com
