Designer Babies and Family Restoration

Families are generally made up of parents bearing and raising children. But what if those parents, who have nearly unlimited reproductive rights, use genetic markers to choose their children, their traits, features, even their personalities? Designing a family in this way places the focus on the adult's interests and desires, rather than on what is best for the child.

This bioethical conundrum is no longer just part of Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, but has become a reality in modern reproductive medicine. Jessica B. Fry, Regent Juris Doctor 2012, tackled this problem in her recent article entitled "Does This Baby Match My Purse: A Proposal to Apply Best Interests of the Child to Designer Babies."

This article introduces the issue of designer babies, one that has actually been given little attention. But when California's Fertility Institute opened in 2009 the ideas that many individuals thought were beyond the grasp of medical science were no longer merely the substance of fiction. Fry brings to light the tragic gap in reproductive ethics where parents are not held to any standard for their reproductive choices. Working instead to highlight the importance of good parenting and strong family dynamics, the article proposes a possible solution to this issue while making the reader aware of the Pandora's Box opening throughout the world. Read her article here.

Family restoration must begin with wise parenting decisions that are based on the best interests of the child. These decisions work simultaneously toward the best action for the family, and the best result for the common good. Adults who parent only by genetic design foster selfish interest, placing their child at risk, rather than working toward family health and harmony, and more often unintentionally harm their child.