What if your only hope of giving birth meant possibly having to kill one or more of your children in the process? Would you go through with it? Many couples do. You see, not only does IVF create excess embryos in petri dishes, but there is also the possibility of creating excess fetuses in the womb. When this happens, some are willing and able to carry all of them to term. Others, sadly, opt to reduce the number of children in the womb through abortion. Patrick at Driving Out the Snakes highlights this couple who decided to abort two of their four children after “too many embryos took hold” following IVF treatments and it was causing serious health complications for the mother. The saddest part about their story is that they were told, prior to implantation, that “reduction” could be a necessary possibility and they went ahead with it anyway. Why, you might (and should) ask, would a couple go through with this procedure knowing that they could possibly end up killing some of their children in the process? Patrick offers this analysis:
It is truly sad that many people who want to have children find themselves physically unable to do so in the normal way. Is IVF really the answer? If your ultimate goal is to have children, why go to all the expense and risks of IVF when thousands of kids wait for years to be adopted?
The answer, of course, is selfishness. Parents like these want their own children. They want to be pregnant, have baby showers, go to the hospital, and have kids that are genetically “theirs.” These things are so important to them that they will wait years, spend thousands of dollars, and possibly still remain barren, before they will consider adopting a child who is not “theirs.”
The couple used genetic testing to determine which of the babies would be more likely to be born with genetic abnormalities. The outcome was the death of the two boys who, because the father was well into his forties, were four times more likely to be autistic. This is just further evidence of the ethical problems surrounding IVF.