'Designer babies' refers to the selection of certain favourable traits for your future child. However, this term was coined by the media and is usually used negatively or humorously; the actual name for this process is pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, or PGD. PGD is a technique used to screen genetic complications or defects in embryo. PGD is used in conjunction with in vitro fertilisation, or IVF, wherein the egg is fertilised outside of the woman's body. Embryo that are free of complications will be fertilised and then passed on to the mother. The method allows parents from passing on deadly genetic disorders to their children.
Recently however, the next step the science world seems to be willing to make is the selection of your baby's physical traits. While gender selection through PGD is already prohibited in Canada, it is still popular in countries like the United States. The Fertility Institutes clinic in Los Angeles not only offers '100% gender selection' to their clients; recently they offered the selection of certain traits, such as hair and eye colour. After public outrage broke out, they decided to close down the operation.
Opinion-wise, the public remains on the fence about this. Some argue that being able to choose your child's physical features is pro-choice and therefore acceptable; others believe that it should not be allowed at all. Some are concerned about the costs—in Canada, PGD adds an average of 3550$ to the costs of in vitro procedure, which alone can range from 7750$ - 12250$. As such, only those with money can pay for the 'perfect' designer baby. Some believe that the process should only be performed for medical reasons, such as for getting rid of genetic complications, as mentioned above.
Personally, I am against the selection of a child's aesthetic traits. Just because the technology is feasible and possible does not mean that we should be falling all over ourselves to use it for our own children. There's a fine line in terms of what we can do through PGD technology. It is one thing to have a healthy baby free of disease, but it is another to choose your baby's appearance. It is almost like saying that, as a parent, I'm treating my child as a commodity with features that can be manipulated and customised, like shopping for a new car. I think it is wrong for humans to think that they should be able to control their babies' features so that they are in accordance to their desires. How would the child feel, knowing that their parents could never accept their appearance from even before when it was an embryo and felt that they had to change it? PGD screening should only be used for medical reasons that save the child's life.
For now humans will have to be careful about how much they look into this technology in the coming future. One day it's hair and eye colour, and the next thing you know, the wealthy will be breeding super-babies who excel at everything, while the rest of the world who cannot afford this technology cannot catch up. One thing is for sure: it will be some kind of future we have in store.
Works cited:
Naik, Gautam. "A Baby, Please. Blond, Freckles -- Hold the Colic'. The Wall Street Journal. Feb. 12 2009. Web. May 19 2011. <http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123439771603075099.html>.
"The Cost of Treatment". Gender and Health. July 29 2008. Web. May 19 2011. <http://www.genderandhealth.ca/en/modules/poverty/poverty-reproduction-infertility-02.jsp>.
Keim, Brandon. "Designer Babies: A Right to Choose?" Wired Science. Mar. 9 2009. Web. May 19 2011. <http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/03/designerdebate/>.
Institute for Reproductive Medicine and Genetic Testing. June 13 2002. Web. May 19 2011. <http://www.preimplantationgenetictesting.com/Faq.htm>.
"Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD)". Genesis Fertility Center. Web. May 19 2011. <http://www.genesis-fertility.com/diagnostics-and-testing/genetic-factors>.
"Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis". Medscape. Sept. 14 2010. Web. May 19 2011. <http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/273415-overview>.
Blogs I commented on:
Designer Babies: Ethical and Social Implications
Designer Babies
