In today’s society there has been a trending growth of women who have decided to freeze their eggs for many different reasons. Social egg freezing is an upturn of women that chose to preserve their oocytes, or more commonly known as eggs, for non-medical reasons and to reproduce their offspring later in life. This is elective procedure is called oocyte vitrification, and over the years researchers have seen significant success. Due to the increase of non-medical egg freezing in the United States, women have been empowered to delay child bearing. Women have chosen to do so for professional, personal, educational, and financial reasons.
The article of Methuselah Moms connected the possibilities and ideology of women having control of their own reproductive lives (Nowak). Women found that having control of their reproductive system gave them the opportunity to dictate what direction their education and career paths would go. There are some advantages to egg freezing that are appealing to women. Some women would see the positive in the possibility of having a genetic child that is inherently theirs (Petropanagos, et al. 666). Women have the opportunity to choose when they can try to have children. In doing so, women will have the ability to advance in their careers, continue their educations, and have full control of their reproductive system.
When older women go through in vitro fertilization (IVF), and use thawed eggs, they could have a reduced risk of having a child with chromosomal abnormalities associated with ovarian aneuploidy (Petropanagos, et al. 667). In the past women without partners felt they didn’t have options. Egg freezing now gives these women another option instead of having to freeze embryos. For many years egg freezing has been used primarily for woman dealing with cancer and infertility, this has changed and given all women opportunities for later reproduction.
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Women at all ages have the risk of developing complications during pregnancy and risks with egg freezing. One syndrome that all women face is hyperstimulation syndrome (Petropanagos, et al. 667). This can cause nausea, fatigue, and abdominal pain. Fortunately, all these symptoms be cared for at home. In some cases, hyperstimulation can lead to more dangerous circumstances (Petropanagos, et al. 667). Risks for women over the age of 35, when freezing egg are at a higher risk of diabetes, preeclampsia, low birth weight, cesarean delivery and pre-term delivery (Nowak). The success rates of births may not be high and can be very hard on older women (Beijing Review). If a woman chooses egg freezing, this procedure must be done at the right time in the person’s life. Doctors are able to test approximately how long a woman has left before menopause. Even with successful fertilization, women at an older age still deal with pregnancy complications. (Beijing Review).
Women are not the only ones waiting or freezing their potential specimen and at risk for complications. Men are also waiting to reproduce by freezing their sperm. Men are at a higher risk to produce chromosomal disorders, epilepsy, autism, or schizophrenia later in age (Nowak). Infants are at risk when women choose egg freezing and IVF later in life. They have a high risk factor to consider when born to mothers over 40 years old (Nowak). There is evidence to show danger of congenital structural abnormalities, risk of cancer and cardiac anomalies of infants born to later in life pregnant women. (Petropanagos, et al. 667). Infants are also at a greater risk of being born preterm. Not only do infants have risks factors from the maternal side, it could also have risk factors from the father if he waits and freezes his sperm also.
When we step back we can look at how there are multiple societal concerns regarding social egg freezing. In the past there were concerns with egg freezing regarding cancer and infertility patients, but now it has transformed to the nonmedical side of why women need to freeze eggs. The growth in medical technology with freezing eggs has increased the nonmedical need for women choosing to freeze their eggs. Some people feel that the use assisted technology to freeze eggs can lead to an outpouring of single parents or illegal selling of eggs (Beijing Review). “Egg freezing entails a lot time, money, and feelings” (Beijing Review). Social egg freezing is inaccessible to women without substantial financial resources, and it’s not comparable to say all women can afford the cost of egg freezing. The costs associated with egg freezing are in the thousands.
Media coverage often emphasizes the potential benefits of egg freezing and ignores or downplays the associated risks. Increased media attention promoting the benefits of oocyte freezing, and not the dangers puts a sends an inaccurate illustration of the pros and cons of the procedure. Employer and private insurance coverage of social egg freezing, may result in growing pressures on young women to freeze their eggs. This can also been found when Apple and Facebook offered their female employee a benefits package for freezing their eggs (Petropanagos, et al. 666). It was not stated though that the offer was given to men for their opportunities for sperm freezing. This type of media hype has brought egg freezing to the front line.
Many people who have difficulties or wait to have children are being helped with reproduction through egg freezing. This technology encourages gender equality by providing women the right to have control over their reproductive system.
