Children's health inequalities and genetic diseases

Hinde Hami, Université Ibn Tofail
Abdelmajid Soulaymani, Université Ibn Tofail
Abdelrhani Mokhtari, Université Ibn Tofail

The aim of this study, conducted at the Souissi maternity in the city of Rabat (Morocco), was to describe children's health inequalities and analyze the social factors that contribute to the formation and persistence of these inequalities. Particular attention is paid to the factors determining the practice of consanguineous marriage. According to the survey results, the choice of spouse, who may have consequences on the population genetic structure, depends on the recommendation of the family, the father most often ''arranged marriage''. According to these results, educational level, place of residence (urban or rural), childhood residence and the age at first marriage have an influence on the choice of first spouse for women. Multivariate analysis of data shows that the probability of marrying a relative is significantly higher among women who spent childhood in the countryside: they have eighteen times more likely than their urban counterparts. Moreover, according to the results, women who marry at a young age are more likely to accept this type of alliance, that is, five times more than the women who marry later. However, these two variables have no significant effect among men.