Parents mum on embryo donation

BERLIN – Only a third of parents whose baby came via embryo donation intend to tell the child how he or she was conceived, a study has found.

By comparison, 100 percent of parents who adopted, and 90 percent of parents whose babies were conceived through in-vitro fertilisation (IVF), said they would tell their child about its origins. The research was put forward yesterday at a conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHR), gathering fertility specialists from across Europe.”The most common reasons for not telling the child about their method of creation were fears that it would upset the child or damage family relationships,” said researcher Fiona MacCallum of the Family and Child Psychology Centre at London’s City University.”(There was) also a feeling that, since the mother carried and gave birth to the child, she was the real mother and so there was no need to tell the child anything different.”Embryo donation entails the donation of surplus embryos, created by IVF procedures, to couples who are infertile.- Nampa-AFPThe research was put forward yesterday at a conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHR), gathering fertility specialists from across Europe.”The most common reasons for not telling the child about their method of creation were fears that it would upset the child or damage family relationships,” said researcher Fiona MacCallum of the Family and Child Psychology Centre at London’s City University.”(There was) also a feeling that, since the mother carried and gave birth to the child, she was the real mother and so there was no need to tell the child anything different.”Embryo donation entails the donation of surplus embryos, created by IVF procedures, to couples who are infertile.- Nampa-AFP