Mortified mum threatens to call police after discovering son is dating cousin

12 September 2023 , 10:30

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She doesn't approve of their relationship (stock photo) (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

A mum has been left feeling sick to her stomach after discovering her son has been secretly dating his cousin. She came across web searches for 'laws on incestual marriage' when using his laptop while he was out of the house - and confronted him about it as soon as he arrived home.

Disgusted, she called up her sister to share what she'd found and strongly encouraged her to have words with her daughter too. Seeking advice on Reddit, she said: "I recently found out my 18-year-old son is secretly dating my sister's daughter, who is my niece.

"I found out he is looking up laws on incestual marriage and planning to move away with her. I confronted him, warned him of the hundreds of reasons why incest is harmful, and forbade it. He seems adamant about marrying her. My sister and I are firm in not enabling this union, and are threatening to cut them off financially."

Unable to get through to him, she threatened to call the police on them and has now taken to social media to ask users how she should best handle this situation. She added: "It doesn't seem like it is working. To make matters worse, they are also having unprotected sex. What can I do about this? Can I prevent them from marrying?"

In the UK, it is perfectly legal for first cousins to marry, whereas the US outlawed marriage between first cousins in 24 states in February 2014. However, 19 states allow it, and another seven only approve of it in certain situations.

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Commenting on her post, one user said: "While this should probably be discouraged due to the social implications, the health risks are actually very low. First cousins only share 12 per cent of their DNA, and if they were to have children then the risk of birth defects is on par with a woman at age 40 having a child with an unrelated partner (roughly double the baseline risk). This changes though if certain diseases run in your family."

Another user added: "Geneticist here. Chill. It's not that bad unless your family already has a history of inbreeding. A genetic counsellor can help them navigate known risks." A third user said: "It's legal in Connecticut where I live. I wouldn't personally want to marry my cousin but I mean, you're just going to push them away doing all this." One more user added: "Yes its taboo, but its not worth disowning your child over. The worst thing is they are having unprotected sex. They need to be adults and use birth control."

Paige Freshwater