Rethinking Genotype: A Simple Knowledge that Could Change the Way You Plan Your Future
As the world marks September as Sickle Cell Awareness Month, a communications professional and genetic counselor, Abayomi Oyelami has called for a deliberate shift towards early genotype education, describing knowledge of one’s genetic status as an important foundation for informed health decisions, relationships and family planning.
Speaking during a conversation with global pharmaceutical giant, Novartis Africa, the health communications expert argued that genotype knowledge should become part of basic health education from childhood, rather than information people encounter only when they are preparing for marriage or confronted with a health challenge. “From cradle to grave, a genotype is one of the defining factors for an individual. The same way we can teach a two-year-old to learn their name, age and gender, we could also teach them to know their genotype. This immediately drives into them the ‘what’, even perhaps before they know the ‘why’,” he said.
According to him, introducing children to genotype awareness in an age-appropriate manner can create a generation that grows up with a basic understanding of its genetic identity. As they mature, that early knowledge can become the foundation for understanding inheritance, relationships and reproductive choices. “By promoting this age-appropriate concept in genetic education, children can carry that knowledge into adulthood, where they can make informed decisions for their future families,” he added.
Oyelami who currently serves as the Communications Officer for Sickle Cell Advocacy and Management Initiative (SAMI), however, warned against another misconception surrounding sickle cell trait, particularly the assumption that individuals with the AS genotype are completely protected from malaria or other forms of illness. “One of the biggest misconceptions about sickle cell trait is that someone who is AS is absolutely free from malaria or any form of sickness. That is not true; they equally have to care for themselves,” he explained, emphasising that carrying sickle cell trait should not be interpreted as immunity from illness or a reason to neglect personal health.
The genetic counselor, Abayomi Oyelami also sought to correct a common misunderstanding about the inheritance of sickle cell disease among couples who both carry the sickle cell trait. He explained that when two AS individuals have a child, there is a one-in-four chance in every pregnancy of the child inheriting sickle cell disease. “It is not the erroneous one-in-four children being widely spread,” he stressed, pointing out that the probability applies to each pregnancy independently, irrespective of birth order.
For couples who both carry the sickle cell trait, he advocated professional premarital genetic counselling, while strongly affirming the autonomy of individuals to make decisions about their relationships and reproductive futures. “I respect autonomy of individuals as thinking beings, and I therefore stand for relationships built upon informed decisions on all grounds,” he said. “I advise that a couple, both carrying sickle cell trait, should prioritise professional premarital genetic counselling, where they can get adequate education which will empower them for the best path forward, taking into consideration their unique experiences and situations.”
His message reinforces a broader public-health imperative: genotype awareness should not be reduced to a conversation about who people should marry. Rather, it should become part of a culture of early health education, informed choice, responsible family planning and access to professional genetic counselling.
