A South African lady has given birth to a baby girl with a ʀᴀʀᴇ ᴍᴇᴅɪᴄᴀʟ ᴄᴏɴᴅɪᴛɪᴏɴ known as ᴘʀᴏɢᴇʀɪᴀ, which ᴄᴀᴜsᴇs children to age rapidly.

A 20-year-old mother from the Eastern Cape in South Africa was looking forward to the arrival of her baby, but things did not go according to plan. The ᴄᴏɴᴛʀᴀᴄᴛɪᴏɴs had already begun, but the ᴀᴍʙᴜʟᴀɴᴄᴇ had not yet arrived, so the family decided to give birth at home. Close relatives with great experience, including her grandmother, helped as best they could, but as soon as the baby appeared to the world, women saw her wrinkled hands and face.

Afraid of doing something ɪʀʀᴇᴘᴀʀᴀʙʟᴇ, the young mother was ʀᴜsʜᴇᴅ to the hospital in a borrowed van, where the doctors had already ꜰɪɢᴜʀᴇᴅ ᴏᴜᴛ the situation. The born girl was very different from other children because of her senile appearance, and she was immediately ᴅɪᴀɢɴᴏsᴇᴅ with ᴘʀᴏɢᴇʀɪᴀ. With this ʀᴀʀᴇ ɢᴇɴᴇᴛɪᴄ ᴅɪsᴇᴀsᴇ, ᴘʀᴇᴍᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ ᴀɢɪɴɢ of external and internal ᴏʀɢᴀɴs occurs.

Photos of the little girl went viral on social networks, where many sympathized with her family, but there were also many who began to ᴠɪᴄɪᴏᴜsʟʏ ᴊᴏᴋᴇ with the child, calling her a monkey and an ape. “If I could, I would ᴘᴜᴛ them all in ᴊᴀɪʟ!” – the ꜰʀᴜsᴛʀᴀᴛᴇᴅ mother was ɪɴᴅɪɢɴᴀɴᴛ.

The director of a children’s rights organization, Khula Community Development Project, Petros Majola, believes communities need to be educated about this ᴄᴏɴᴅɪᴛɪᴏɴ.

“Communities must know that the mother did not apply for her baby to be like this. In a woman’s ᴡᴏᴍʙ, there is no construction or factory that builds babies. People need to embrace this child for who she is,” says Majola.