On May 14, 1939, history witnessed one of its most baffling medical enigmas when Lina Medina, a 5-year-old girl from Peru, delivered a baby — making her the youngest confirmed mother the world has ever known. Despite accusations from some that the entire story was fabricated, numerous physicians throughout the years have validated the case, pointing to both photographic documentation and medical records as proof.
Lina's mother had taken her to see a doctor back in April of 1939, alarmed by the unusual swelling in her daughter's abdomen. Her fear? That evil spirits had taken hold of the young girl. The examining physician, meanwhile, suspected something more clinical — an abdominal tumor developing inside the child. As it turned out, a medical examination proved them both entirely mistaken.
What Lina actually had was a rare condition called precocious puberty, a phenomenon that triggers the onset of puberty far earlier than is typical. This condition affects roughly 1 out of every 10,000 children. Remarkably, Lina had experienced her first period when she was just three years old.
The medical team caring for Lina harbored serious concerns for both the young mother and the baby developing inside her, bracing themselves for a wide range of potential complications. When the moment of delivery arrived, a Caesarian section was performed. What followed stunned everyone involved — mother and child both came through the operation without any complications, and each was in good health.
Lina's parents took on the responsibility of raising the baby alongside Lina herself, who — unsurprisingly — was far more captivated by playing with her dolls than by the demands of motherhood. To this day, Lina has never disclosed the identity of her child's father or shared any details about how she came to be pregnant. Dr. Gerardo Lozada, the physician Lina's mother initially brought her to, described the case as "the most incredible thing" he had encountered throughout his entire career.