Some people in need of sperm are turning to websites that facilitate the free exchange of sperm but, Health Canada is warning Canadians not to get sperm in this manner. They are sending warnings to the people who run these websites because the semen has not been screened and could pass on disease.

---

Part Two of The Current

Free sperm exchange on the internet - Beth Gardner

When an infertile man wants to have children with his wife, or a lesbian couple wants to start a family, or a single woman want to raise a baby on her own -- they all have to rely on a male outsider.

Typically, people rely on a sperm bank. But a surprisingly small number of men donate to the banks -- a recent study for Assisted Human Reproduction Canada found there's a pool of roughly 60 "altruistic" donors. And there is a demand from 5,500 patients. It's illegal to buy or sell sperm in this country, but there is a new way to find sperm, for free... the internet.

We shared some readings of postings on a website where donors can reach out to women looking for sperm. There are several of these sites, but Health Canada has issued two warnings within the past year about the dangers of using these websites. They say donor semen isn't regulated and so it can be unsafe and spread disease.

Beth Gardner is the founder the Free Sperm Donor Registry, a website she calls a community resource. She's actually both a founder and a user of the site. She was in San Diego.

We requested an interview with Health Canada so they could explain their concerns about these websites. But they told us no spokesperson would be available.

Free sperm exchange on the internet - Juliet Guichon

So it's not exactly the thing little girls dream about - one magic day, hooking up with a sperm donor online. But if it has to be a transaction, meeting a donor through a web site means less red tape than a fertility clinic.

But fewer rules may be part of the problem. Our next guest is someone who studies some of the health, legal, ethical and social implications of assisted reproductive technologies.

Juliet Guichon is a legal scholar in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Calgary, where she also works in the office of Medical Bioethics. Juliet Guichon joined us from our Calgary studio.

If you've had an experience with an free sperm website or a sperm bank, we'd be interested in hearing from you.

Related Links:

• Sperm donors father huge 'families' in US, Canada By: Kilian Fichou - AFP
• Fertility under provincial jurisdiction: top court - CBC News
• Potential Dangers of Using Donor Semen from Questionable Sources - Health Canada
• Online sperm donation: 'Baby donor available. Text me' By: Bryony Gordon - Telegraph
  
  

Music Bridge

Artist: Metric
Cd: Live It Out
Cut: 4, Too Little Too Late
Label: Last Gang
Spine: Q2 00908

Other segments from today's show:

• Time to strike tents on the occupy movement?
• Changing the face of Schizophrenia