# Why do mentally retarded people LOOK retarded? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 17, 2006, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908 "2006-02-17T03:28:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Thing\_Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@Thing\_Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing_Fish)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2017, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/41 "2017-08-22T19:52:25Z")
> [@TSBG](#): > > A doctor friend told me that during her residency (about 20 years ago) she learned that one of the signs of a possible mental deficit in an infant was “FLK Syndrome”–i.e., Funny Looking Kid. If the baby didn’t look quite right, they would check for other signs and symptoms of “retardation.” > > No doubt other doctors on the board can weigh in on whether that’s a real thing, and in use beyond the the hospital where my friend was a resident. However, I am absolutely certain she told me this and that she and the other doctors believed in it as a preliminary indicator–diagnostic would be too strong a word. Yeah, that phrase was commonly used in my OB/GYN rotation. The pearl I remember most is “The most common cause of FLK is FLP (Funny Looking Parents)”. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2017, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/42 "2017-08-23T03:23:26Z")
> [@Flyer](#): > > I think we’ve talked about this before, but this thread doesn’t mention it. I’ve noticed that there is a subset of low-IQ people who are literally mouth-breathers. I worked with a woman for a while who could hold a job, but her IQ was noticeably lower than average. She walked around with her mouth half-open pretty much all the time. I’ve dealt with a few other people like that, too. Down syndrome can apparently lead to a small mouth, which causes the tongue to protrude, which in turn can lead to mouth breathing. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2017, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/43 "2017-08-23T04:27:42Z")
[QUOTE=Thing Fish] Yeah, that phrase was commonly used in my OB/GYN rotation. The pearl I remember most is “The most common cause of FLK is FLP (Funny Looking Parents)”. [/QUOTE] A variant I’ve run into is AQR or Ain’t Quite Right ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2017, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/44 "2017-08-23T11:03:14Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > A variant I’ve run into is AQR or Ain’t Quite Right My veterinarian shared with me that a few of her medical records contain the code DSTO. Dog smarter than owner. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2017, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/45 "2017-08-23T14:44:47Z")
> [@TSBG](#): > > A doctor friend told me that during her residency (about 20 years ago) she learned that one of the signs of a possible mental deficit in an infant was “FLK Syndrome”–i.e., Funny Looking Kid. If the baby didn’t look quite right, they would check for other signs and symptoms of “retardation.” > > No doubt other doctors on the board can weigh in on whether that’s a real thing, and in use beyond the the hospital where my friend was a resident. However, I am absolutely certain she told me this and that she and the other doctors believed in it as a preliminary indicator–diagnostic would be too strong a word. > [@Flyer](#): > > I think we’ve talked about this before, but this thread doesn’t mention it. I’ve noticed that there is a subset of low-IQ people who are literally mouth-breathers. I worked with a woman for a while who could hold a job, but her IQ was noticeably lower than average. She walked around with her mouth half-open pretty much all the time. I’ve dealt with a few other people like that, too. Several studies I have read about on the topic - “what makes an attractive mate?” - mentioned that good looks (and particularly facial symmetry) are indications of good genes, good environment for development, etc. The point was that even if subconsciously, human brains are well tuned to recognize flaws in other humans that scream “unhealthy, not good breeding material!” (Men just ignore those 😃 ) So the subtle cues that some people may give off that point them out as unhealthy, we tend to recognize; not just with physical deformities, but also how a person carries themselves in social situations, or even how they appear walking down the street. (There’s a term in computer graphics and robotics called the “uncanny divide” - computer-generated humans in movies, or robots with Mme Tussaud-level human appearance, still give off “vibes” that humans recognize as “not quite right” in their attempt to act life-like. Just as some humans probably couldn’t pass a Turing test, some probably fail to pass the uncanny divide…) ---
**Author:** ![protoboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/fbc32d/32.png) [@protoboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/protoboard)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2017, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/46 "2017-08-23T16:52:46Z")
If they have Down’s Syndrome, for example, it also leads to distinctive physical characteristics. I would imagine that being intellectually disabled would also affect facial expressions. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2017, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/47 "2017-08-23T16:59:55Z")
Old Victorian melodrama - A: “I’m not as dumb as you think I am…” B: “No, you couldn’t be…” ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2017, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/48 "2017-08-23T22:12:09Z")
> [@Pjen](#): > > Parents tend in some cases to dress their children and young adult children in ways that mark them as different. Additionally, some parents will limit the chances for socialization for their children which ends up with the child not learning how to look or act normal for their age. I realize this is an old post by a banned poster, but there are parents of NORMAL children who do this. :rolleyes: :mad: ---
**Author:** ![TSBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@TSBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TSBG)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2017, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/49 "2017-08-23T22:14:11Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > I realize this is an old post by a banned poster, but there are parents of NORMAL children who do this. :rolleyes: :mad: Er…are you my neighbor? ---
**Author:** ![Renz\_Medicinal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Renz\_Medicinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renz_Medicinal)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2017, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/50 "2017-08-24T00:51:30Z")
It’s not always a bad thing and normal people try to look retarded. Just look at half the women in the movies, specially the steamy scenes. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2017, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/51 "2017-08-24T02:21:16Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > I couldn’t help but be struck by how all of them seemed to have facial irregularities – crooked teeth, lopsided looks, walleyes, and the like. I also know a couple of guys with acquired brain injury. The frozen joints (following the physical injury) give you a clue something is wrong, and the dent in the skull is another indication. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2017, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/52 "2017-08-24T02:30:03Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > The point was that even if subconsciously, human brains are well tuned to recognize flaws in other humans that scream “unhealthy, not good breeding material!” (Men just ignore those 😃 ) Only men? Considering the kind of men a lot of women voluntarily breed with, you’re quite mistaken. Drug addict? Criminal record? Chronically unemployed? They’ve got chicks standing in line. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2017, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/53 "2017-08-24T17:40:50Z")
> [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > Down Syndrome doesn’t automatically mean you have intellectual disability. ID is one possible (well, extremely probable) symptom in a huge raft of issues. The severity of the ID can also vary widely. Somebody with a mild ID can function and learn. It just takes more work, more patience, more of everything Then there is savant syndrome, where the individual may be able to do certain things extraordinarily well, like being able to hear a complicated piece of music once and then play it perfectly note for note. But in everything else they may have very limited ability. IIRC savant capabilities are unknown to exist in people who aren’t disabled… You don’t get the good without the bad, in other words. A couple of other examples of savant skills: art, numeric ability (like in _The Rain Man_), etc. Sometimes savant syndrome occurs with autism; I’m not certain that even severe autism is considered retardation as such, though. Occasionally I come across usages that suggest that autism and ID are being conflated in the popular imagination. I’ve come across a plot summary of _What’s Eating Gilbert Grape_ that describes DiCaprio’s character as autistic. ---
**Author:** ![si\_blakely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@si\_blakely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/si_blakely)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2017, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/54 "2017-08-24T18:15:14Z")
> [@JR\_Brown](#): > > Not a doctor, but a biologist: many of the developmental programs that shape brain development are part of the development of the head and face in general (and frequently other organs), so visible abnormalities of head or face development are often a signal that there might be something wrong in brain development as well. Advances in both DNA analysis and facial analysis software have helped develop new diagnostic tools that just rely on a cellphone camera. The extension of this approach to diverse (i.e. non-white european) populations is an ongoing effort: [Facial recognition software helps diagnose rare genetic disease](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/03/170324104956.htm) In many cases, the analysis is of features not directly recognizable to the human eye, but forms part of a statistically significant pattern that allows deeper investigation. ---
**Author:** ![Pippers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b5a626/32.png) [@Pippers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pippers)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2017, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/55 "2017-08-24T20:03:04Z")
My neighbor was telling me about her younger brother that had just passed away. She said he had fetal alcohol syndrome as a child and that his body was slightly misshapen and his eyes never focussed properly. What’s interesting is her eyes wander and she has a very stocky look to her torso and neck. I’m guessing the alcohol issue probably affected all the siblings. No? ---
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2019, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/56 "2019-08-01T01:02:29Z")
It’s worth mentioning that not all conditions of facial abnormality are associated with intellectual deficit. [Treacher Collins](https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcthree/2011/04/jono-lancaster-so-what-if-my-baby-is-born-like-me.shtml) syndrome is a good example. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2019, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/57 "2019-08-01T01:28:01Z")
I have often reflected, not exactly on the OP, but on the opposite – how do I know someone is unusually intelligent, or unusually interesting, without them opening their mouth. Down’s Syndrome aside, it is just another facet of that question. How is it that faces look like their contents? It’s rare that they do not, and when there’s a disparity it is usually because youth, sexual beauty (there are other kinds but they aren’t as distracting), or something externally destructive (like chronic drug abuse) has masked it. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2019, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/58 "2019-08-01T02:07:06Z")
> [@Ulfreida](#): > > I have often reflected, not exactly on the OP, but on the opposite – how do I know someone is unusually intelligent, or unusually interesting, without them opening their mouth. It’s their eyes, mostly. Are they looking up, down, away, or straight at you? Do they perk up when they hear something interesting? You can’t put too much stock in that, because my dog also does all that, but it’s somewhere to start. ---
**Author:** ![Rayks\_Marcial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e47c2d/32.png) [@Rayks\_Marcial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rayks_Marcial)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2019, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/59 "2019-08-01T02:26:28Z")
Well, during the golden age of cinema female movie stars liked to look and talk retarded. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2019, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908/60 "2019-08-01T05:18:12Z")
> [@Rayks\_Marcial](#): > > Well, during the golden age of cinema female movie stars liked to look and talk retarded. Say what now? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mentally-retarded-people-look-retarded/344908.md?page=4)