With the birth of her first child at the age of five, Lina Medina became the youngest mother in history. Upon learning that she was pregnant, a lot of people believed her story to be the saddest thing ever. But this would only be the start of a more complicated life for Lina.
The world’s youngest mother has not disclosed the circumstances behind her pregnancy. Also, her life has been spent in obscurity, although she later married and had a second child.
Lina Medina Is Currently 91 Years Old
Lina Medina was born in 1933 in Ticrapo, Castrovirreyna Province, Peru. Her parents are Tiburelo Medina and Victoria Losea and she was one of nine children.
The story of Lina’s early pregnancy and becoming the youngest mother in history is closely associated with much of what is known about her early years.
How Lina became the world’s youngest mother at the tender age of 5
As you will easily find, Lina is popularly known as a Peruvian woman who became the youngest confirmed mother in history when she gave birth on May 14, 1939, aged five years, seven months, and 21 days.
The beginning of it all came when Lina Medina’s parents saw that their daughter’s tummy was becoming substantially bigger. They initially assumed it was a huge abdominal tumor and then took her to a hospital after local shamans were unable to cure her. But when they arrived at the hospital, Dr. Gerardo Lozada discovered that Lina was seven months pregnant. The doctor needed to clear his doubt, so he consulted some other medical experts who also confirmed that she was pregnant.
Based on the medical assessments of Lina’s pregnancy, she was less than five years old when she became pregnant and this was due to precocious puberty. In medicine, precocious puberty is puberty occurring at an unusually early age.
Lina gave birth to a child via cesarean section a little more than a month after it was established that she was pregnant. The Cesarean section was necessary as a result of her tiny pelvis.
With the birth of her child in May 1939, Medina became the youngest mother in medical history, having been five years, seven months, and twenty-one days old at the time.
Lina’s son was raised believing his mother was his sister
Lina’s son, Gerardo was born weighing 2.7 kg (6.0 lb; 0.43 st). He was named after Gerardo Lozada, the doctor who discovered she was pregnant.
Meanwhile, before learning that Medina was actually his mother at the age of ten, Gerardo was brought up thinking of Medina as his sister.
Dr. Lozada was given permission to take custody of the son at his Lima house after the boy had first stayed with his family. He later hired Lina to work at his clinic, allowing her to visit her kid periodically. Lozada also put her and her son through school.
Lina’s son Gerardo had a healthy upbringing but he died in 1979 from bone marrow disease. He was 40 when he passed.
Lina Never Disclosed the Identity of Gerardo’s Father
The simple fact that Medina was pregnant at the age of 5 implied under Peruvian law, that she had been sexually assaulted before turning five.
However, Medina has always kept the identity of her father’s child a secret. In spite of this, Lina’s father was arrested on suspicion of child abuse but was later released because the authorities lacked evidence. After that, no one has ever established who was the father of Medina’s child. It was not also confirmed she became pregnant after being raped.
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Although Her life has been obscure, Lina Medina is Married to Raúl Jurado
Following a traumatising childhood and young adulthood Medina was able to find love in the arms of Raúl Jurado. She married Raúl a second son with him in 1972.
Now aged 91, Lina keeps to herself and has long refused requests to speak on what happened to her in the past. Also, Jurado said his wife, whose story is a medical textbook classic and whose case is confirmed as true by such bodies as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, had turned down several invitations for interview.
However, a book by Jose Sandoval, an obstetrician who has been following Medina’s case has brought her story to new attention and increased the possibility that the Peruvian government may eventually provide her with financial and other support.
According to sources, Peru’s government had earlier promised Lina some aid but the help never came to bear. Many years down the line, Medina and her spouse reside in a small home in Lima’s impoverished, volatile neighborhood known as Little Chicago.
Her husband Raúl Jurado has also said some individuals have asked the government to reconsider Lina’s case and grant her a life pension. However, according to Raul, his wife remained skeptical because, in 1939, the government did nothing to assist her. She also doubts that they will do anything now.