Baby Makes

From I Just AM, A Story of Awareness and Tolerance by Bryan and Tom Lambke

“A person with Down Syndrome is not a Downs.” There is no apostrophe. The “s” in syndrome is not capitalized. An individual with Down syndrome is an individual first and foremost. The emphasis should be on the person, not the disability.

Children with Down syndrome grow into adults with Down syndrome; they do not remain “eternal children”.

It is important to use the correct terminology. A person has metal retardation, rather than “suffers from”, “is a victim of”, “is diseased with”, or “afflicted by”.

National Down Syndrome Society (USA) established October as National Down Syndrome Awareness Month

• Those with Down syndrome are at a greater risk for leukemia, sleep apnea, hypothyroidism, celiac disease and diabetes

From Just The Facts Down Syndrome by Kristina Routh:

During the Renaissance, from the 14th to the 16th century in Europe, many paintings included images of infants with Down syndrome. They were portrayed as innocent cherubs or even(, as in this 15th-century picture,) the baby Jesus.