32 year old Nigerian Catherine Howarth was
convinced she had been given the wrong
child when midwives presented her with her
new baby shortly after she gave birth at a
Milton Keynes Hospital on June 1st. She was
stunned because the little boy named Jonah
was completely white. And even though
baby Jonah has a white father, doctors say
the chances of him being completely white
too were an incredible one in a million.
And it wasn’t only baby Jonah’s parents who
were stunned, so were the midwives.
“The midwife looked at me and looked back
down at Jonah and then at me again and
couldn’t believe it. The doctors confirmed it
was extremely rare."Catherine.
Her husband Richard Howarth, 34, was
equally astonished.
“When I first set eyes on my baby boy
Jonah, it was a feeling of pure delight and
relief that he was healthy and strong. His
complexion was very pale due to the
umbilical cord being wrapped around his
neck when he was being delivered.
“After a few hours his colour came to his
cheeks. Catherine and I noticed his
complexion was very similar to mine and
were surprised it was as light. The midwives
and doctors told us he’ll most likely remain
this colour.”
Doctors have said Jonah is not an albino.
“We have been told that I must have been
carrying a recessive gene. My parents were
from Nigeria and, for as far back as anyone
can remember, my family have all been
black. But at some point there must have
been a white gene in my family that has
remained dormant for years and years –
until now. The doctors said they had
researched the chances of this happening
and discovered that it was very, very rare.
They had only found two similar cases, both
in America, that had been reported in
recent times.” Catherine said
Catherine and Richard say they plan to have
more children but have been told the
chances of them also being born white are
highly unlikely.
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