Sex Selection: Can we choose the sex?
Around 102-106 boys are born for every 100 girls so the odds are already in Junior’s favor.
Old wives tales cite eating meat or salty foods or making love at specific times to ensure the conception of one sex over another, but medical techniques nowadays can offer a better chance of influencing what sex your child will be.
Doctors can identify a baby’s gender in two ways: genetic testing of the embryo, or sperm sorting before conception. You may have to fulfill eligibility criteria – fore example, some clinics require that you be married and already have a child if you’re doing it for non-medical reasons.
Genetic testing
With pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), embryos created with IVF are tested for genetic conditions and gender. It’s 100 percent effective, making it the best method of ensuring that couples who carry a genetic disease have a healthy baby, although you may still be advised to have prenatal screening later in pregnancy. Few clinics offer this method for non-medical reasons and it’s very expensive – expect to pay in the region of $20,000.
Sperm sorting
There are two methods of sperm sorting, which work in different ways:
• MicroSort This method sorts sperm into boy/girl genders and uses the sample containing most of the desired sex to artificially inseminate you. It works by coloring the sperm with fluorescent dye: in theory, the male sperm should absorb more and glow more brightly because they’re larger. It’s cheaper than PGD and can be used to weed out male sperm if you carry a genetic disorder that affects only boys, but it isn’t 100 percent effective. As yet, this method has not received Food and Drug Administration approval.
• Ericsson method This works on the principle that male sperm swim faster, and it separates sperm into two samples on that basis by introducing a sample into a test tube containing a thick fluid. According to the theory, the male sperm should make it to the bottom of the test tube faster. It’s the cheapest method and there are usually no qualifying criteria – but it‘s also the least effective, with around a 50 percent success rate (although it’s inventor, Ronald Ericsson, claims a 75-80 percent success rate).
See sperm sorting for more information.
The information in this feature is intended for educational purposes only. If you have any concerns about your health, the health of your child or the health of someone you know, please consult with a doctor or other healthcare professional.
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Last Modified: 02/05/2007
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