Sex selection is more popular in certain countries, but has been used from the earliest times, when the male children were preferred due to their working power or other features. Besides the ethical concerns that accompany sex selection, there may also be demographic concerns.
Sex Selection Methods
The sex selection may be performed before of after the conception of the baby. However, today, the pre implantation methods are considered more valid and moral. The pre implantation methods involve selecting the sperm and implanting the sperm with the selected chromosome X or Y. The other methods involve detection of the sex of the fetus and aborting the baby if it is not of the wanted sex. Preferential sex adoption is also considered a type of sex selection.
Demographic Concerns
Due to the fact that parents have the option to select the sex of the baby, there may be a few demographic concerns, as in the long run there may be more men than women or vice versa, depending on how couples choose their babies. A gender imbalance may lead to a number of problems. In certain societies where there are more males than females, the men that don’t have the opportunity to get married may turn to crime. There may also be other issues such as prostitution or selling of brides. These problems are frequent in China or India, where there are more men and women.
There are no studies to show that a society with more women than men may have problems, such as increased crime rate. However, in the Western countries, there is no sign of a demographic imbalance yet. But, if more and more couples opt for sex selection and the choice will be mostly for boys or mostly for girls, the demographic balance may be disturbed. This may be a problem for the future generations.
Gender Imbalance
So far, in the Western cultures, the number of men and women is balanced. Researchers have shown that even with the option of sex selection, families are typically choosing boys and girls in proportionate numbers, trying to balance the gender imbalance in their families. Consequently, there should be no major demographic concerns. However, the number of male and female babies that are born with sex selection procedures will be monitored.
Adoption from Foreign Countries
One possible problem that should be considered is the adoption from foreign countries. If the choice of girl babies is more popular than the choice for boys, this may lead to an additional demographic imbalance in countries where there are already more males than females.
