For centuries couples have tried choosing the sex of their children, from tedious fertility planning calendars to home kits. It seems that most couples, if given the option, would pick the sex of their child.
In countries like China, where there are birth limits, couples feel more pressure. According to a recent study, more than 40% of couples worldwide would choose the sex of their child. But is the ability to select a child's sex really a good thing?
Advocates of sex selection have a strong argument and a wide range of support. Dr. Ronald Ericsson has been marketing a home test kit to help couples choose the sex of their child. He has been in business for more than 30 years now and according to him, this issue does not concern critics and says that if the technology is available, people are allowed to use it.
Considering all the destructive things we've done with technology, it seems a bit reckless to say that just because the technology is available, we should use it.
Most advocates of sex selection fail to mention that this process is still under development, so the results are not always 100% what you want them to be. As a result, couples can spend thousands of dollars in an attempt to get the baby of their choice, only to be disappointed in the end. These can lead to the termination of pregnancies and although I am an advocate for the right to do whatever you want with your body, is it morally right to terminate a pregnancy just because you wanted the opposite sex for your child?
Not only is this process dangerous, but it can also create sex distortion ratios, especially in countries where one sex is preferred over the other as a member of society.
Advocates have come up with a solution for that. Dr. Suresh Nayak, an Indian OBGYN, suggested that the fear of ratios changing is unfounded because it is only available to a fraction of couples who can afford it.
More couples are taking advantage of these procedures as they are getting increasingly cheaper. Couples have flooded fertility clinics trying to make designer babies. By the end of 2004, more than 4000 successful cases of sex selected babies were reported. Many schools are starting to study the procedure to make it more available to couples.
Undoubtedly, this procedure will alter the natural sex ratios even if more people can afford it. If it were only up to some doctors and scientists, this procedure would be available to everyone.
Many countries in Europe and Asia have banned this practice. They must have realized that this procedure is not only unethical and dangerous but is also a stepping stone to creating full designer babies; next, they would want to choose the color of their eyes, hair, levels of intelligence, etc.
If we continue to allow sex selection, there could be irreversible effects on society as we know it. Sex selection is a powerful tool that we have not fully come to understand. If we do not draw a line, no one will be able to stop wealthy parents from completely designing their children, which would consequently create deformations in the human race at some point and promote intolerance towards others.
By discouraging parents to select their babies' sex, we are encouraging children to have fewer prejudices and accept others regardless of sex. The only acceptable way to choose the sex of a child is through adoption. There are so many children in need of loving families that if you're adamant about having either a boy or a girl, then all you need to do is adopt one!
