Gender Selection Pros and Cons List

The movement towards knowing your child’s gender.

In the past, there was no definite way of knowing the gender of your child before they were born. There were plenty of folk methods to try to figure it out, but nothing that was certain to work. In the last half century or so, science has managed to work out a ways of seeing inside of the womb and knowing the gender of the child before they are born. In more recent times, though, science has managed to develop the means of selecting the gender of a child before they are born. There are many who embrace this change as well as those who are against the idea. It is important to look at all of the advantages and disadvantages of actually choosing the gender of your child ahead of time.

List of Pros of Selection

1. You have control over your family size.
When you are working with gender selection for your children, you have a good idea of what children you have and when you will have them. there is no uncertainty during this process about when or when not you will have a child. This is an important factor for many families since parents that are interested in selecting the gender of their child are also often interested in limiting their family size.

2. You get the gender mixture that you desire.
When you were growing up, did you imagine a specific family? Perhaps you knew that you wanted three children or four, but many people also imagine specific details about those children, including their names and genders. By choosing to select the genders of your children, you give yourself the chance to have that family that you imagined when you were growing up without being disappointed that you got a girl instead of a boy or the other way around. With gender selection, you will have a say in the gender combination in your family.

3. You will know how to prepare for your child.
If you do not know ahead of time about the gender of your child, then you may not be prepared when that child enters the world. Perhaps you decide to go with a gender neutral plan or you get brave and plan for the child that you hope is on the way. Of course your other option is to just not prepare at all and have to get everything ready after your child is born.

4. Both parents will have a say in the choice.
If you choose to select the sex of your child, then you will find that there is a chance for conversation with both parents to decide what they are looking for for the future of the family. There are many possible options that may be taken, but as with most important choices in life, this is one that will be best when both parents work through the decision together rather than one or the other making the choice.

5. Families will not feel the need to have another child to get the gender that they want.
I’m sure you have seen the families that have multiple children of the same gender, but none of the other. Sometimes in this case, or of both of the parents would like to have had at least one child of the other gender so the family keeps trying to have a child of that other gender. This has led to an increase in the population that could have been avoided if the parents had had the option for gender selection of their child.

List of Cons of Selection

1. There is a large expense to this process.
Because the science of gender selection is so new, there is a large price tag attached to this process. As it become more popular and you see more families investing in it, the price will come down, but at this point, you can spend as much as twenty thousand dollars to select the gender of your child.

2. It is not yet 100 percent accurate.
Because this is a new science, there is also still a large chance of something not going correctly. While you may have every expectation that you will have a boy or a girl, you will not definitely know until the child has developed enough for medical technology to evaluate if the process has been successful or not. Because of this, it may not be worth the money you would have to invest because you will not get a second chance to make sure that the gender is the correct one that you are planning for.

3. You do not get the thrill of not knowing.
One of the most exciting parts of having a baby for many people is the thrill of finding out what the gender of that child will be. If you are going to select the gender of your child, you will not have the chance to enjoy that thrill. However, you will still be able to keep the gender from everyone until you decide to reveal it. This means you can still have one of those gender reveal parties so many people are enjoying these days.

4. Some people consider gender selection a form of discrimination.
In China’s past when there were strict laws dictating how many children you could have, there was a tendency for parents to abandon a female baby because females were looked down on as lesser citizens. In the modern world, the same may be seen to happen for females as well as males if parents have the choice on the gender of their child. Of course in this case the bias against one gender or the other is dictated more by the desire of the parents than by the biases of society.

5. It can be seen as a form of abortion.
Parents who select their child are essentially choosing a certain embryo and rejecting the others. because these embryos are fertilized eggs, they could be seen as human lives depending on who is making the choice on what a human life it. If you are against abortions, then gender selection may not be the right choice for you and your family.

Is gender selection the right choice for your child and your family?

After seeing a list of the advantages and disadvantages of selecting the gender of your child, it is now time for you to consider what the right choice for you and you family is. Take into consideration if choosing the gender of your child will fit into the belief system of your family as well as how much you really want to determine the shape and form of your familial unit. When you choose the gender of your child or children, you are making a choice not only for yourself and for your family, but for your future children as well. There is no knowing how that will impact your future selves, but there is no point in not making a choice because you don’t know everything that the future will bring you. Talk with your family and decide if gender selection is the right choice for you.