In England and the US, about 1 in 700 babies is born with a cleft (that's about 1,000 each year in the UK and about 5,000 each year in the US).
According to the Mayo Clinic, researchers believe that most cases of cleft lip and cleft palate are caused by a unique interaction of genetic and environmental factors, although a definite cause may never be discovered for each child.
The known risk factors are:
- Family history (a child needs genes from both parents to have the condition)
- Race (please see our discussion of Race as a risk factor for an important perspective)
- Gender
- Environmental factors, such as fetal exposure to cigarette smoke, alcohol, certain medications, illicit drugs and certain viruses
Researchers also believe that some clefts may be caused by nutritional deficiencies in the mother, particularly a lack of folic acid (an essential B vitamin).
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