A study conducted by a fertility clinic in Texas is paving the way for couples to be able to choose the sex of their baby – and that is just plain wrong.

The study was conducted by the Baylor Clinic, part of the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, the Northern Star reported in a Nov. 14 article.

Members of the college’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and ethicists from the college’s Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy conducted the study to better understand ethical and cultural factors that affect a couple’s decision to choose the sex of a baby.

While it’s always great to see advances in modern science, parents should not be able to choose the sex of their baby for a multitude of reasons.

Mitrick Johns, associate professor of biological sciences specializing in human genetics, said PGD, a labor intensive and expensive process, could be relatively risky.

“There is definitely more of a chance that you can damage or kill embryos than if you don’t move them at all,” Johns said.

The process also raises many ethical questions.

“Some people think that every embryo is precious, while some don’t believe they are human beings,” Johns said. “I don’t think we know enough and are not wise enough when considering this process.”

Another reason parents should not have the ability to choose the sex of their child is because there already is a natural balance of males and females that may be tipped unfavorably.

According to the National Center for Health Statistics, 1,050 boys are born for every 1,000 girls.

But perhaps the most important reason parents should not have this choice is simply because today’s parents are not responsible enough to handle it.

The Star feels today’s parents may unnecessarily exploit their children for their own gain.

Imagine, for example, a father with a failed football career who chooses to have a son so he can live out his dream through him.

This whole idea, of course, also furthers negative gender stereotypes so common in today’s society. Who is to say what activities or jobs are solely for males or females? How would a procedure like this affect workforce inequality between men and women?

According to www.babycenter.com, a single round of the procedure can cost nearly $20,000, so it probably will not even be feasible for it to make its way into mainstream America for some time.

The process, however, should not be allowed to continue at all.

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www.northernstar.info.