Research on Donors and Offspring

by Barry Stevens

Donor insemination has been practiced for at least a century. Thousands of children have grown up without knowing that their biological father was, in fact, not the man who raised them. Male infertility was a taboo subject and it was widely felt that the children simply didn't need to know.

That attitude is now changing and many countries are considering legislation that will guarantee that the children born from donor insemination have a right to access their medical history and contact their biological fathers. Two recent studies in the medical journal, Human Reproduction raise issues for countries considering legislation on a child's right to know.

Sweden was the first country to make anonymous donor insemination illegal in 1985. This meant that parents must tell their children about their biological origins and sperm donors must agree to be identified.

A recent survey of 148 couples who used the procedure showed that only half of parents were complying with the law by telling or intending to tell their child. Yet many had spoken freely about it to others putting their child at risk of hearing it from another source. Even though anonymous donor insemination is against the law it appears that many children will still not know the truth about their biological origins. Legislation has not been enough to change personal attitudes about donor insemination.

"BBC NEWS CLIP: From today, people who donate their sperm and eggs to fertility clinics will lose their right to anonymity. It means children conceived in this way will now be able to trace their genetic parents once they reach the age of 18. But the law won't be retrospective so people who have already participated won't be affected. And donors would have no financial ..."

In Britain researchers interviewed sixteen adults who were conceived by donor insemination. All subjects came from countries where the offspring have no legal right to know their biological father and none discovered that they were conceived this way until they were adults.

The interviews revealed that many were shocked to discover their biological origins and all felt they had a right to know about their genetic origin. All had made inquires to search for their biological fathers and where frustrated when they quickly became thwarted in their search. Many of the children faced problems with personal identity and feelings of abandonment. There were feelings of deceit and mistrust towards the families. The research suggested that the secrecy maintained by families can be damaging and children can pick up on hidden clues.