Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Delayed Fatherhood May Be Linked To Certain Congenital and Mental Disorders

Posted by timothy on from the guess-I'll-just-have-to-have-mutants dept.

New submitter optimus_phil writes "New Scientist magazine reports on findings that suggest that delaying fatherhood may increase the risk of fathering children with disorders such as Apert syndrome, autism and schizophrenia. The article reports that 'although there is a big increase in risk for many disorders, it's a big increase in a very small risk. A 40-year-old is about 50 per cent more likely to father an autistic child than a 20-year-old is, for instance, but the overall risk is only about 1 per cent to start with.'"

1 of 192 comments (clear)

  1. and the risks of marriage delays parenthood by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    With a 50% divorce rate in the US, if you have children and you're the primary wage earner, it is likely you
    1) Pay for kids that you only get to see 20% of the time
    2) Pay your ex-spouse for his'/her's decision/ability to make less money than you do
    3) Pay your ex-spouse's legal bills so that person can cause you as much pain as possible in court
    I think it is a horrible deal.
    And the legal system becomes the other person's weapon to abuse you.
    Miss a payment, and you're screwed.
    If you want children, donate your source code.
    If you want to raise kids, date someone who has nice kids.