edits June 2022 and also in 2025 originally published in 2017
In our society, IVF is considered to be the greatest gift for families who are struggling with infertility. IVF provides families who cannot conceive on their own with a child. IVF is touted as the solution for those that struggle with infertility to have a new found hope of having a child. This is what our society proclaims about IVF yet many look at the end result without knowing the hidden facts about the process. These children are seen as ‘potential humans/persons.’ I think many families who do a few unethical aspects in IVF, and I think they do not see these embryos as their children but as “potential” humans. That is where I think the problems come down to.
Live Action shared about a speech that Dr. Caruso (a former IVF doctor) did for Pro-Life Action League which says, “Caruso states that back then they would take early embryos and implant them, but that technology and treatments kept advancing and therefore embryos would end up being frozen at later and later stages of development. “As this was happening, we were beginning to leave these embyros in culture longer and longer,” he said. “[…] we focused on the babies. […] We never really thought much beyond that.” (Former IVF doctor: Children are viewed as “manufactured” goods (liveaction.org)) Dr. Caruso said that the children through IVF are considered “manufactured goods.”(Former IVF doctor: Children are viewed as “manufactured” goods (liveaction.org))
Freezing a child for later use will just cause a child who could have a family to live in limbo and to cause you to keep paying for storage for this child that may never be born. If you are contemplating keeping your embryos in storage simply in limbo this is harmful as this embryo needs a family. There is a responsibility to care for this child as much as the child who is born or in utero. This embryo is your child and therefore please do not keep him or her in storage due to just sitting in limbo as the cost to keep this child in storage is not a trade off for the gift of this priceless child being given to a family through adoption.
You see I think that IVF can become “a price tag on an embryo mentality” and a ‘left over’ mentality and not a child and parent view point. I want to give an example. Imagine a couple has a 5 year old child and they can’t take care of them so you are given 5 options for their life. First the parents could allow the child to perish or donate the child to research so this child can be experimented on such as with (embryonic stem cell research) or the parent can give the child the hope of being adopted to an adoptive family. Adoption is step that couples should take.
The second point in options for an embryo has more detail then known. What occurs as these children are donated to science is that scientists experiment on these children.
…..Allowing ones child to be adoption through embryo adoption! This is the most ethical response to act upon given the options for the embryos that you have. This life needs protection and just as your 5 year old needs your protection, so does this child and if you feel personally that you cannot care for this child then allowing this child to be loved by a family who can provide those needs is the greatest gift you can give to your child!
National Embryo Donation Center provides families with the ability to donate their embryos and to have these embryos then adopted to loving families.
There are side effects to IVF stated by Live Action, “Women who go through IVF are at increased risk of post-traumatic stress and depression from failed IVF cycles. They are also at increased risk for ovarian cancer. Plus, children created through IVF are at increased risk for developmental disabilities, cardiac problems, chromosomal abnormalities, and even survivor’s guilt when they learn they have siblings who were frozen indefinitely or destroyed.” (Former IVF doctor: Children are viewed as “manufactured” goods (liveaction.org))
Dr. Anthony Caruso’s story is a testament to the broken reality of what IVF truly is.
As we wrap up, I want to share with you some quotes and a story from Dr. Caruso shared by the Live Action article above. The article shares about a story of a woman who chose to have a ‘cerclage placed in order to prevent her child from being born too soon, but she asked her doctor to remove it because she felt she could just try again. She was okay with her child dying, because she would be able to do another round of IVF and create another one.’(Former IVF doctor: Children are viewed as “manufactured” goods (liveaction.org)) This industry sometimes produces “a manufactured goods mentality” toward children.
Resource: https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/the-horrors-of-in-vitro-fertilization
http://liveactionnews.org/former-ivf-doctor-children-viewed-manufactured-goods/
http://liveaction.org/blog/page/70/
https://embryodonation.wordpress.com/page/12/
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