Running head: DESIGNER BABIES
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Genetic Engineering: Where Should Society Draw the Line?
Liberty University
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Genetic Engineering: Where Should Society Draw the Line?
While genetic engineering can be used to “delete” problematic embryos and prevent
diseases from being carried on, its theoretical use for desirable physiological traits will inevitably
follow. Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis could spiral out of control and create a science-
fiction-like social divide with grave consequences. PGD could forever alter the human race and
bring about a number of unknown consequences.
What Are Designer Babies?
Currently, designer babies are a theoretical term that has not come to fruition, at least not
among humans because of a worldwide ethics dilemma. “A designer baby is a baby genetically
engineered in vitro for specially selected traits, which can vary from lowered disease-risk to
gender selection” (Ly).
The theoretical designer baby actually takes the practice of genetic engineering in pursuit
of having a healthy baby a step further to include what the parents wish their child will look or
think like. This term has sprung from the current desire for aspiring parents to ensure their
children will be free of diseases hereditary ailments; it is now an official term in the Oxford
English Dictionary.
In vitro fertilization has become common practice in the United States and is a legal
alternative for couples struggling with infertility problems; however, a similar practice known as
“germline editing” has remained banned as of 2015. Germ-line editing, or engineering is a
process in which DNA is modified or removed from embryos that would otherwise perpetuate
disease genes. This “editing” could cure multiple generations of people from hereditary disease,
but it can also become the genesis of designer babies and has created a bioethical controversy.
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Why Would Designer Babies Be Immoral?
Although aspiring parents’ desires to free their future children of disease and
abnormalities hold merit, the inevitability of furthering modifications to embryos for desirable
traits can have disastrous consequences for society and the human race as a whole. Genetic
modification is not a guarantee that things will go as planned. The science behind it is still
relatively new and unproven. Patient safety is still a concern as well with any new medical
technology and desired results are not always the case even with the common practice of in vitro
fertilization.
Morally, there is little dignity for a human when its parents have tried to design its
physiology. If a child is born with the traits his or her parents have selected for them, where
would this leave a growing person’s sense of self? This idea of modifying a child to suit a
parent’s desire for looks or intelligence is technically identical to buying a pure-bred dog, and
undignified. Every child will eventually decide on their own what their interests and aspirations
will be no matter what their parents wanted for them in the beginning. Sure, parents today
attempt to instill passion for sports in their children by facilitating athletics in their youth, but it
hardly lasts. To have offspring that are tall and athletic or highly intelligent are truly not what
parents should care about in the end. Parents should only hope and pray their children are born
healthy, then it is the parents’ job to raise and care for them the right way.
At their core, a growing person will ultimately decide for themselves what their interests
and goals will be no matter what their parents want for them. They could potentially bear the
likeness of selections parents made on their behalf in a doctor’s office, but parents will not be
given the option to select personality traits. Parents should aspire to give their children the best
possible environment to grow in and be appreciative of the blessing they have been given.
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Parents seeking to bear children of their own is a natural right and justified for all people,
but when fertility or genetic issues come to the point of preimplantation genetic diagnosis,
potential parents should consider adoption. There are currently over 500,000 children spending
some amount of time in foster care in the United States. These children deserve every
opportunity that is afforded to those growing up in stable homes.
The Morally Permissible Argument
European ethics officials are now in favor of genetic engineering to potentially rid
embryos of some diseases and abnormalities. Their only claim is that the genetic modification
practice must adhere to a certain set of principles. “The United Kingdom’s leading ethics body
has issued its support for the science behind genetically modified babies, calling it “morally
permissible” so long as altering the DNA of the fetus is in its future interests and does not
further divide society” (Dedaj, 2018).
Some have even gone further as to support full-on design of unborn children from height
to possibly emotions claiming this could help to advance the human race, going so far as to bring
natural selection into their argument. “According to Tsien and other scholars, this would not
only improve the lives of individuals, there would also be social advancements due to
improvements in intelligence and productivity. All of this would improve the human gene pool
for future generations” (Catalano).
The flaw in this logic is that it does not acknowledge the tremendous social divide it
would bring about between the people who can afford to use gene editing and those who could
not. The divide could potentially reach a science fiction-like state and forever alter the human
race. Aside from probable social inequality, this technology is not proven to be safe and
effective; not hardly enough to be a standard medical practice. “Nevertheless, the science behind
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it is far from perfect, and in some cases has proven unsafe and problematic. DNA that is
damaged during the procedure could be passed down to future generations” (Dedaj).
In conclusion, the prospect of designer babies is unsafe and immoral. The argument for
genetically modified babies being morally permissible does not acknowledge how easily genetic
modification for health could give way to modification for looks. Society as a whole must tread
cautiously into genetic engineering of unborn children and set strict, clear guidelines for what is
acceptable. The parameters of acceptability must clearly end at the health of future children.
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References
Catalano, M. (2012). The Prospect of Designer Babies: Is it Inevitable? Retrieved from
http://pitjournal.unc.edu/article/prospect-designer-babies-it-inevitable
Dedaj, P. (2018, July 17). Designer babies may be 'morally' acceptable, UK ethics council
decides. Retrieved from http://www.foxnews.com/health/2018/07/17/designer-babies-
may-be-morally-acceptable-uk-ethics-council-decides.html
Ly, S. (2011, March 31). The Embryo Project Encyclopedia. Retrieved from
https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/ethics-designer-babies
Regalado, A. (2016, April 07). Engineering the Perfect Baby. Retrieved from
https://www.technologyreview.com/s/535661/engineering-the-perfect-baby/
Steere, M. (2008, October 30). Designer babies: Creating the perfect child. Retrieved from
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/10/30/designer.babies/index.html?_s=pm:te
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