Schoolgirl, 10, looks like a pensioner because of her wrinkled skin

Girl, 10, is mistaken for a 60-year-old woman because of mystery condition that has left her with sagging and wrinkled skin

  • Bo Rakching, from Cambodia, was born with her wrinkled and saggy skin 
  • But she still has physique of a child is the same height as her brother, Chea, 11
  • Local monks reportedly believe her older appearance is because of bad karma
  • Bo, from a remote village, dreams of having plastic surgery to ‘make her pretty’ 

A schoolgirl who has the wrinkled skin of a pensioner and is called ‘grandmom’ by her siblings has told how she dreams of having a ‘pretty face’.

Bo Rakching, of Cambodia, was born with the folds and saggy skin, giving her the appearance of an ageing woman.

But the 10-year-old still has physique of a child and stands at the same height as her brother, Chea, 11, and other youngsters her age.

Local monks reportedly believe her older appearance is because of bad karma she is carrying from a past life.

 

Bo Rakching, of Cambodia, was born with the folds and saggy skin, giving her the appearance of an ageing woman

But the 10-year-old still has physique of a child and stands at the same height as her brother, Chea, 11, and other youngsters her age (pictured with Chea)

But the 10-year-old still has physique of a child and stands at the same height as her brother, Chea, 11, and other youngsters her age (pictured with Chea)

Bo’s family have yet to seek a medical opinion, however local reports state it could be down to cutis laxa, which causes the skin to lose its elasticity.

Bo, from a remote village on the outskirts of Phnom Penh in the south, now dreams of having plastic surgery to ‘make her pretty’.

She said: ‘I want the pretty face. I want to have surgery. The other children call me ‘old folk’.

‘Among all my brothers and sisters, I am the only one with an old face. They all have young faces. They do not call me sister, they call me grandmom.’

Local monks reportedly believe her older appearance is because of bad karma she is carrying from a past life. Pictured with a monk

Local monks reportedly believe her older appearance is because of bad karma she is carrying from a past life. Pictured with a monk

Bo, who now wants a 'pretty face' through surgery, is pictured with her mother and a journalist

Bo, who now wants a ‘pretty face’ through surgery, is pictured with her mother and a journalist

WHAT IS CUTIS LAXA? 

Cutis laxa is the umbrella term for a group of rare disorders that cause wrinkled and saggy skin, or the look of premature ageing.

The disorders cause patients to lose elasticity in their skin, most usually around their face, arms, legs and trunk. 

‘Abnormal skin may give affected individuals and children a prematurely-aged appearance and they can look much older than their true age,’ The National Organization for Rare Disorders states.  

Most cases of cutis laxa – estimated to strike just one in a million people by NORD – are caused by a genetic mutation.

The body says the condition has been reported in approximately only 400 families worldwide – but many cases go undiagnosed.

Bo revealed that she has asked them to stop calling her names, however they all continue to taunt her.

Footage shows Bo speaking to a local monk on August 1 who says that she has ‘still not cleared the bad path from her life’.

Asked if she feels shy and embarrassed, Bo answers ‘yes’ but admits she has never asked her mother for treatment.

The monk, who confirmed she is ten years old and studies at the local school in Grade One, encourages her to stand up to the bullies.

But the devout Buddhist, named Voeun, told her that her appearance is down to a ‘bad path’ from a previous life which is still haunting her to this day.

In the video, Bo appears to agree and says that she ‘was shot in a previous life’ and has ‘not cleared the bad path yet’.

Discussing her ‘past life’, she said: ‘When I was young I was shot. After they shot me, I died… Then when I was born, I had the old face like this.

‘My mom had a dream and saw that she took a flower which had already bloomed, then she give birth to me with the old face.’

Monk Voeun said: ‘I feel pity for her. When we are born, we always studied about the bad path. 

‘People were born in this place or that place based on the good or bad path that have taken before.

‘Remain on the bad path, then when you clear all the bad path away, you will become pretty.’ 



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