Psychology of Childhood and Adolescence in an Urban Context

“The prospect of designer babies, like many of the ethical conundrums posed by the genetic revolution, is confronting the world so rapidly that doctors, ethicists, religious leaders and politicians are just starting to grapple with the implications–and trying to decide how they feel about it all.” TIME Magazine

The concept of a “designer baby” is becoming a controversial epidemic in society today. Not only has it caused issues today, but it has also done so for many years. I remember sitting in a science class in junior high school, learning about the process of creating a baby based on how you wanted it to look. I wasn’t aware of what this process was called or if it was entirely true, but I came to later find out that a baby who underwent this process was called a “designer baby.” I understand that many people are willing to undergo the process of in vitro fertilization (IVF) to have children, but to what extent?

Many women who have infertility problems will do anything to have a baby of their own, and in turn look into IVF in order to conceive. Since the majority of this process is done using scientific technology, babies can be developed a certain way due to the implantation of certain genes. This process can also help create a baby without genetic disorders. This is what is referred to as a designer baby. Chapter 2 describes the process of how a human is made and how chromosomes determine the sex of a baby. When creating a designer baby, doctors can choose which chromosomes go into the embryo to develop either a boy or a girl, if they can have twins, and whether they can eliminate the percentage of their baby having a genetic disorder. Although, I feel that all babies should be healthy and shouldn’t have genetic disorders, to what extent is the designer baby concept going overboard? Many people want to choose the way their children look, in terms of eye, skin, and hair color. Professor Lee Silver from Princeton University makes his opinions on designer babies in this you tube video.

I personally feel that creating a designer baby, based on deciding if your child not having genetic disorders, depends on the individual trying to conceive. However, in terms of cosmetics and trying to design how beautiful your baby is going to look, should not be allowed, since then that baby will not have a biological interheritance.