One of the most difficult things about having a miscarriage is the seeming randomness of it. Mine started 72 hours after a booking-in appointment, during which the midwife had repeated how easy and low risk my pregnancy would be. There were no indications that it wouldn’t work out – the blood and gore just seemed to come out of nowhere.

In the weeks and months that followed, my mum started talking to her pals about miscarriage for the first time and found that nearly everyone she knew had been through it or had family members who’d experienced pregnancy loss. She was shocked; no one in our family seemed to struggle with fertility or pregnancy loss and yet everyone she spoke to had an experience of it. And then she remembered something: her mum had gone to stay in hospital for a few days when she was a small child, and before she left, my mum and her sisters had been told that a new addition might be joining the family. On my grandma’s return, the subject was never raised again.  

It seems logical to suppose that she might have had a miscarriage and just not spoken about it (not that much has changed since the 50s). But it got me thinking: is there a genetic element to pregnancy loss? When we launched our Every Loss Counts campaign, we gathered together a group of incredible women together to talk about their experience of pregnancy loss, and it was amazing just how many seemed to have a family history of miscarriage and stillbirth.

So, is there a genetic link? And might it help your mental wellbeing to know that your mum, sister, aunt or grandma has gone through miscarriage if you end up experiencing the same thing?

Journalist Arielle Steele’s sister had a miscarriage two years ago and she says knowing that helped her to process her own pregnancy loss. “It made me feel less alone and gave me someone close who’d been through the process to advise me and remind me that it gets better. My sister’s next pregnancy was healthy, so it gave me an immediate sense of hope.” 

Since then, Arielle has wondered whether there’s some kind of genetic thread that links her miscarriage to her sister’s, especially as her grandma also suffered a late-stage miscarriage. “I did wonder if there was a genetic element, but my mum had four pregnancies that all worked out and my sister’s father-in-law is an obstetrician who said that it was just bad luck.”

Caitlin Hamilton’s mum had a suspected miscarriage in between having her and her brother, but only mentioned the fact after Caitlin’s pregnancy ended. “Knowing that did make me wonder about the genetic aspect of miscarriage, but I also know that pregnancy loss is common, so that kind of overrode my suspicions,” she says.

Amy Bamford also found a family link after experiencing miscarriage. “It’s crazy how alone you feel when you go through something like a miscarriage, but the more you open up, the more you realise how common it is,” she tells Stylist. “When I miscarried twice last year, I felt like a failure. I only knew one person who’d experienced something similar: my mum. But once I started talking about it, it turned out that other family members and friends had been through the same thing.” 

So, what does the science say? Together with the baby loss charity Tommy’s, we’ve been calling for miscarriages to be counted, as we currently have no data on how common they really are. That makes it difficult to make any real conclusions as to the causes of early pregnancy loss, although a 2023 review into sporadic and recurrent miscarriage found that 80% of miscarriages happen in the first 12 weeks and that more than half of those are caused by genetic defects in the embryo. The paper goes on to state that certain chronic conditions are linked to recurrent miscarriage, including PCOS, hypothyroidism and thrombophilia – all of which may have genetic links. This suggests miscarriage might be more prevalent in some families, but only where there’s an inherited condition that necessarily makes carrying a pregnancy to full term more risky.

Meanwhile, a 2020 review looking at family history and risk of miscarriage published in the journal Obstetrics And Gynaecology assessed 10 studies involving the data of 41,287 women. It concluded that women who miscarry “may be more likely to have a family history of miscarriage”, with all but one of the studies finding a link. One Danish study (included in the review) found that daughters were at higher risk of ectopic pregnancy if their mother had experienced one, which the authors said could suggest a genetically inherited immunological response or placental dysfunction issue. But, the authors warned, further research is needed to confirm or refute those findings – particularly as some of the studies used weren’t very high quality. 

Dr Jyotsna Vohra, director of research, programmes and impact at Tommy’s, tells Stylist: “Right now, there isn’t enough research evidence for us to say definitively whether pregnant women and birthing people are more likely to have a miscarriage if there is a family history of miscarriage. However, we know that lots of women and birthing people find out that family members have experienced miscarriage once they have been affected and the evidence that exists suggests there might be a link. 

“Tommy’s is committed to funding research that finds out why miscarriages happen, including any inherited or genetic factors, and how we can prevent them in the future, as well as ensuring that anyone who has experienced pregnancy loss has support with their emotional and mental wellbeing.”

It’s totally normal to want to find answers for why a pregnancy hasn’t worked out, and by talking more openly about our experiences, we’re more likely to receive the support we need. But for now, it looks like we’ll just have to wait and see what new research comes out on the topic before coming to any firm conclusion.

Images: Getty