Opinions Vary Amongst Pennsylvanians on Whether Parents Should be Able to Change the Sex of their Child Genetically at Conception

Opinions Vary Amongst Pennsylvanians on Whether Parents Should be Able to Change the Sex of their Child Genetically at Conception

PITTSBURGH-- Many parents are eager to find out the sex of their child via ultrasound or upon birth. They throw gender reveal parties, wear pink and blue, or even surprise relatives with the news. But what if it wasn’t a surprise anymore? 

With recent genetic technology, parents are now able to pay to have the eventual sex of a fertilized egg changed. Some think this could be a good thing and reduce gender disappointment, others think geneticists shouldn’t be playing god. 

An article from the Pacific Fertility Center in Los Angeles California refers to this process as “gender selection.” PFC Los Angeles states that most families choose to do gender selection for what they describe as “Family Balancing”. 

“Simply put, family balancing means that if the Intended Parent(s) always wanted a girl, but only had sons, they can select gender during IVF to ensure a balanced family,” said the Pacific Fertility Center Los Angeles. 

According to PFC Los Angeles, other reasons for gender selection can include wanting to avoid passing on gender-based genetically transmitted diseases, losing a child of one gender and wanting to have another, or feeling more psychologically ready to raise one gender over another.   

PFC Los Angeles mentioned that gender selection is an option and typically happens when Intended Parents are going through In Vitro Fertilization (IVF). 

The Mayo Clinic describes IVF treatment as collecting mature eggs fertilizing them with sperm in a lab. This laboratory process is how genetic specialists are able to change the sex of the fertilized egg. Both gender selection and IVF are costly treatments. So, PFC Los Angeles recommends careful consideration when deciding to do gender selection due to the high cost and potential of regret later in a parent’s life. 

Trinity Kern, 22, a Duquesne University Student, thinks that allowing the modification of a fertilized egg’s sex could reduce gender disappointment and reduce the number of struggling children in America’s foster care system. 

“I think anything that could prevent a child from going into that system is worth looking into. If gender is a deciding factor on whether someone wants their child or not, this could be game-changing” Kern said. 

Some families may feel inclined to place their child up for adoption or in the foster care system because of their sex. As of 2024, the American Foster Care System was made up of 51% boys and 49% girls, according to Kids Count Data Center. 

While this may not be a large problem in the U.S., the choice of gender selection may affect countries such as China who have a one child policy for population control. According to The National Libray of Medicine, this policy was instated in 1979 and has remained in place. After this policy was instated, many girls were disowned so families could still take part in the one child policy and try to have a boy, since boys in China carried on the family name. For China, having the option of gender selection could be very impactful.

Many citizens have concerns about gender selection. Some, like Pittsburgh resident Jennifer Morgan, 51, may wonder what the limits for genetic alteration in IVF are. 

“Where do you draw the line? Then people will want to genetically alter their children in other ways like changing their hair, height, etc,” Morgan said. 

Morgan thinks that some things can get “dangerous” from both a power and physical dynamic when science is involved. 

Another Duquesne University Student, Adam Giger, 22, feels that gender selection upstages the way of nature. 

“The way we can’t control the weather, we shouldn’t be able to dictate a living thing’s nature,” said Giger. 

As PFC Los Angeles stated, partaking in gender selection could leave parents with residual guilt and psychological distress. They may ponder the “what if” of their child and if they are living life the way they were intended to at conception.

Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics graduate, Parker Brosius, 22, thinks that some parents may be unfit if gender is a large deciding factor in having a childt. 

“If gender is such a disappointment then I don’t think people should be having children in the first place” Brosius said. 

Gender disappointment is a mental health struggle that many parents face and choose to work out through therapy. Babycenter says that “gender disappointment is real and totally normal.” They provide ways to cope with gender disappointment on their website. 

Brosius said “Having your own children is such a privilege and going against nature’s pre-deided laws and genetically altering that should not be allowed.” 

The added impact of money, potential guilt, and natural process in gender selection causes citizens to be very opinionated on whether parents should be able to change the sex of their child.