Dad with Down syndrome breaks through barriers and raises dentist son

A father with Down syndrome has been able to fight through barriers to raise his son who is now a dentist.

Student Sader Issa, from Syria, said that his father Jad - who has Down syndrome - has been a huge support to him throughout his life.

In addition to raising and supporting his son, Jad has also become a pillar of the community. Downs Syndrome has been no barrier to him being able to raise his son.

Jad supported his son by allocating funds from the wheat mill where he worked, providing money for his son's college tuition.

Speaking to the Syrian Society for Social Development, Sader said: "I’m proud of my father. Throughout my life, he has been the greatest support for me when I needed it.

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"It’s possible to see when his eyes are filled with joy and satisfaction as if to express 'Yes, I have Down’s syndrome, but I raised this man and did everything in my power to make him become a doctor and help others'."

Some people put questions to the family about the nature of his mother and father's relationship.

Sader told Metro UK: "One of the concerns people have is how can a woman who doesn’t have Down’s syndrome marry a man with DS?

"I believe if the two partners were on the same page then why not get married? They are intellectually suitable for each other; very simple but loving and caring people.

"When people search Google they find that men with Down’s syndrome (DS) are infertile so they get confused when they hear about us."

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According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Down syndrome 'is a condition in which a person has an extra chromosome'.

"Chromosomes are small 'packages' of genes in the body," they explain. "They determine how a baby’s body forms and functions as it grows during pregnancy and after birth.

"Typically, a baby is born with 46 chromosomes. Babies with Down syndrome have an extra copy of one of these chromosomes, chromosome 21. A medical term for having an extra copy of a chromosome is 'trisomy'. Down syndrome is also referred to as Trisomy 21.

"This extra copy changes how the baby’s body and brain develop, which can cause both mental and physical challenges for the baby. Even though people with Down syndrome might act and look similar, each person has different abilities.

"People with Down syndrome usually have an IQ (a measure of intelligence) in the mildly-to-moderately low range and are slower to speak than other children."