Designer Babies

DESIGNER BABIES

Every day scientists gain more knowledge. What they do with this knowledge is intended for good; however, no one is in control of what may happen. For example, scientists can now tell you by testing your DNA what defective genes you carry. Every day they are finding more and more genes that can be linked with things, such as cancer and heart disease, to things, like alcoholism and homosexuality. It has also been suggested that there is even a gene for shyness. The big problem is that there are many ways these new advances in genetics can be abused.

New advances are intended for good, but there are always things that can go wrong. For example, the use of the sonogram was intended to help prospective mothers with their pre-natal care. In a society such as China, where there is a limit on the number of children you can have, women are using sonograms to find out the sex of the fetus and choosing abortions if it is a girl.

Unborn Child

Genetic Engineering (song)

Wooden Sculpture of Science Genetics

With these new advances in technology, it is scary to think about the possibilities that may happen here in the United States. The problem here is that parents may be using genetic engineering to form what have been called designer babies, which means that parents can now find out enough about their unborn child to decide whether or not they would like to continue with the pregnancy. There is both good and bad that can occur from this new advancement in technology.

One way this new advance could be beneficial is because it could find out who is at a higher risk for many conditions such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. When people know this information about their genes, they can alter their lives accordingly. This...