In the past two days, an advertisement pushed on an e-commerce platform has aroused heated discussion among netizens. The advertisement reads:
What if I have a daughter? The second child uses alkali X treasure!
The slogan was especially loud, but within half a day, the product was revealed without relevant approval documents, and the platform side also removed the advertisement urgently.
In fact, in addition to the alkali X treasure that broke out this time, various strange products and folk remedies that claim to help give birth to boys and girls have been circulating on the Internet, such as calculating the Qing Dynasty palace map, eating alkaline food, adopting special body positions, etc.
Are these methods reliable?
The most authoritative international medical secondary database [UpToDate] points out that none of these methods can affect the sex of the baby, whether it is food, calculation or special skills.
Is it true that there is no way out now that medicine is so developed?
There is only one way to control the birth of boys and girls.
That is the third generation IVF technology.
To be precise, it should be one of the third generation of IVF technology, called [Techniques for preimplantation sex selection].
Why is it useful?
Generally speaking, everyone has 23 pairs of chromosomes, including one pair of sex chromosomes, which determines our sex:
Girls are XX and boys are XY.
Girls contribute an X and boys contribute an X or Y. When they meet (fertilize), if the combination is [XX], then they are pregnant with girls. If the combination is [XY], it is the boy.
At the moment the fertilized egg is formed, it is decided whether it is male or female. Naturally, the ratio of male babies to female babies is 106: 100, which is about half of the male and half of the female.
The third generation IVF technology can artificially select sperm and eggs carrying corresponding chromosomes before the fertilized eggs are formed, cultivate the fertilized eggs under the conditions of in vitro laboratory, and then implant them into the uterus of the pregnant mother.
But!
The development of this technology is not to control the birth of boys and girls, but…
Science and technology are used to save lives.
The original intention of this technology is to prevent newborns from suffering from hereditary diseases through sex selection.
For example, if you give birth to a boy, the child will suffer from the same disease as his parents, but if you give birth to a girl, you will be healthy. At this time, due to medical considerations, you can choose a healthy girl.
Therefore, the use of this technology is strictly limited.
Major medical associations in Europe and the United States, including the American Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG), the British Human Fertility and Embryology Authority (HFEA) and the European Human Reproductive Association (ESHRE), have explicitly required that this sex selection technology can only be used to treat certain genetic diseases and cannot be used for sex selection for non-medical purposes.
The “Measures for the Administration of Human Assisted Reproductive Technology” issued by China’s Ministry of Health also clearly stipulates that medical personnel are not allowed to implement gender selection that is not required by medical needs.
In short, this sex selection technology is to help create a healthy life.
However, giving birth to a boy or a girl is a helpless additional choice.
Is it really the same in China to have boys and girls?
Although the incident of “giving birth to boys’ pills” broke out this time is scientifically absurd, we know the reasons behind it.
In order to satisfy their preference for children’s gender, there will still be some people who will calculate the Qing Dynasty palace map, some who believe in acid and alkali constitution, and some who will pray to God and Buddha…
Some people live one by one, and even others…
The Beijing News collected the data from the national census and drew a group of pictures. The result is frightening:
Generally speaking, the normal natural birth rate of men and women should be around 106: 100. However, the sex ratio of men and women at birth in many places is higher than this level, and in some places it even exceeds 120: 100.
The situation of two or three children is even more terrible:
In some places, the sex ratio between men and women for two and three children can even exceed 160: 100.
Who, and by what, decides the sex of the child?
Perhaps the incident of “giving birth to boys’ pills” will soon subside. However, gender selection is a complex issue involving human rights, medicine, ethics and gender equality.
This problem may always exist.
Choosing gender for the sake of children’s health is respect for life.
Choosing gender in order to satisfy personal preferences is a trample on life.