 |
| Lina Medina after giving birth in 1939 (Source: Rare Historical Photos) |
It is confirmed that Lina Marcela Medina is the youngest mother in history, giving birth at the young age of 5 years and 7 months. Lina was born in Peru on September 23, 1933. Her mother, Victoria Losea, who was a housemaker, and her father, Tiburelo Medina, who was a silversmith, came from what seemed like a modest family.
Her parents found an odd abdominal swelling at the age of 5 and 6 months, which they assumed at first sight may have been some form of tumor, but would never have known that Lina was actually 7 months pregnant until Dr. Gerardo Lozada's diagnosis. The parents didn't even imagine at first that it was possible to become pregnant at that age, and they took Dr. Gerardo for a fool. Therefore, they took Lina to an expert who actually confirmed the initial diagnosis.
Rape, Incest, or something even Grimmer?
The doctor called the police after hearing this news, and they immediately arrested Lina's father as the first suspect. The police had to let Tiburelo go after a week of questioning, as they did not have enough proof to show that the father had impregnated his own child. Lina's cousin, who obviously had mental problems, was the second suspect who made the authorities believe he might be capable of such a heinous crime, but again, with no evidence, the police could not prosecute him as Lina's child's father.
 |
| Victoria Losea and Tiburelo Medina (Lina’s parents) (Source: Rare Historical Photos) |
In the presence of her mother, the authorities tried to get some answers from Lina to see if she recalled anyone hurting her or raping her. Once again, with the child highly uncertain by all that was happening to her, the police could not proceed to a possible perpetrator or suspect. The authorities dropped the case with no further evidence, nor any leads.
In an article about the case from 1955, the author Luis Leon states that many of the remote villages from Peru held regular “religious festivals” that lead to group sex or even rape which did include minors or children of such young ages as Lina. In the absence of a more plausible theory on Lina’s case, it is believed that she was in fact raped at one of these strange and sick festivals.
Giving birth at the age of 5
Due to her young age and undeveloped body for a pregnancy, the only way for her to give birth to the baby was via a cesarean section, this implicated many risks that could have put Lina’s life at risk. When Lina was 8 months pregnant and her parents were pressured by the media, her mother did confess that Lina started her menstruations at the age of 3. It was later found out by specialists that she suffered from a condition know as precocious puberty, meaning that her sexual organs would develop at a very young age, Glands that secrete growth and sex hormones begin to function abnormally early in life resulting in this condition. The exact cause of this condition is still unknown.
 |
| Lina recovering after giving birth in 1939 (Source: Rare Historical Photos) |
The Doctors at the maternity knew that there was a high chance for the baby to have major difficulties as Lina’s young organism was thought at the time to be undeveloped, therefore not able to offer the baby the nutrition required when developing during the 9 months of pregnancy. With a miracle, the baby was born healthy at a perfect weight of 2.7 kilograms and coincidentally on mother’s day 14th of May, 1939.
The child was named Gerardo Medina, a name inspired by Lina’s doctor who helped her through labor. The father’s identity still remains a mystery even to this day. What is sure is that Lina was another innocent young victim of sexual abuse. What is more horrifying is that this is still happening to this day.
 |
| Lina with Gerardo at the age of 1 (Source: Rare Historical Photos) |
Lina’s parents tried to offer her child and their grandchild a normal childhood by explaining to them as they grew up the relation between the two. It’s admirable that Lina’s parents protected her privacy and did not use Lina’s unique condition for financial gain. Many researchers and doctors took a big interest in Lina’s case and therefore wanted to study her as well as her child. Lina’s parents once again refused as they wanted to offer Lina a normal childhood.
 |
| Lina Medina in 2018 (Source: UGC) |
Lina is still alive and well today, at the proud age of 87. Not much is known about Gerardo Medina, nor throughout the last decades as the public had respected the privacy of the Medina family.
){kind=link}
0 Comments