People Share How They've Won And Lost The Genetic Lottery


It's a game of give and take.

Human beings are curious creatures. We are always struggling between two sides of the coin--light and dark, mean and nice, toxic and healthy, etc. And our gene pool seems to be no exception: what genes have given, genes will taketh away. Let's find out some more about each other's genetic wins and shortcomings.

u/vectormessiah asked:

How did you simultaneously win and lose the genetic lottery?

Here were the answers.

Attributes Up

South-east asian:

+100 resistance to redness from sun exposure

-100 resistance to redness from alcohol

A Hivey Life

Allergic to everything but latex and food.

Deadly, But Not?

My colleague told me a story about growing up in Burundi and his mother having sickle cell anaemia.

I tried to be sympathetic, but he said it was not viewed as completely terrible as it made her immune to the Malaria epidemic that was going on at the time.

A Ways To Go

It looks like puberty doesn't even know my name, so I still have very little acne, a tiny boy, and a really high voice for a guy. Although, people always tell my I have really beautiful eyes.(kind of greenish gray)

The Gag

I don't have a gag reflex... very useful and very deadly. I can choke and not know until it's too late

As One Sense Goes

I'm the only person in my family with perfect eyesight, but I'm also the only person who doesn't have a sense of smell.


28-inch inseam.

Good: even the worst economy class flight is no big deal.

Bad: finding pants that fit and ladies that wanted to get into them.

Ugly Or Unhealthy?

I'm very healthy with no genetic disorders or diseases, but look wise i ain't doing so well

Quite A List Of Things

I look younger than I am (still get ID'd despite being in my 30s), and don't need to shave as often as most other men... basically I'm a baby faced assassin.

But I've ankylosing spondylitis, crohn's disease, osteoporosis, recurring uveitis, am losing my hair, and am all of 5ft tall because my back is collapsing (I was never tall to begin with, 5'5" peak height).


I am tall and creative, and I have a connective tissue disorder which has been causing me problems for my entire life. Apparently this means I get to look forward to constant pain once I'm older. Yaaaay, and sorry dad I'm never passing this onto another generation.


I never get sick. Ever.

My natural cholesterol is so high, you could spread my blood on toast.

A Heart Full Of Stuff

Doing great in my Electrical Engineering program - Father died from his 2nd heart attack at 36, most of the men on that side of the family are dead by their mid 40's despite being active and dietary conscious. Fortunately I have a great cardiologist and many advances have been made - so fingers crossed.

Guys - don't think because you are "fit" you are automatically safe.


I practically never vomit: I think maybe once in the past twenty years, and even then it was barely a vomit at all. No matter how rough I feel, I can always prevent myself from throwing up.

The flipside is that I also never burp, which means all that gas has to go somewhere. The result? I have some fearsome toots.


Infertile and have stomach and lung issues, but in return I'm immune to the plague. So if y'all ever need anyone to fight those plague carrying squirrel bastards in the Grand Canyon, I am your guy.

Dat Back

Tall, not bad looking, fairly muscular but have a very high propensity to develop back problems. My lower back is a mess and I'm only in my mid-20s.

Everybody's Gotta Have 'Em

Having nice breasts but being a man.

Healthy But Recovering

I had cancer.

Also I'm 6'3 225 lbs and played college football on scholarship sooooo not sure if i have a net gain or loss.

But Can You Use Them?

I am considered to have gorgeous eyes, they are my best feature. However, I have absolutely terrible vision; near/far sighted with astigmatism. I cannot recognize my own mother from five feet away.

Can't Focus

My hearing is so good my brain can't keep up with it. I regularly shock people by overhearing what they're saying from extreme distances, but as a result of picking up every piece of ambient noise I often find it difficult to understand what the person in front of me is saying.

Tiny Tiny

Lose (working on how I feel about myself)? Everything about me is tiny. Puberty grazed me, then left the building. Often get mistaken for a child.

Win? I rarely get ill, and when I do, its never horrible. My immune system seems rather decent.

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—George Takei