Genetic engineering – Brave new world Designer babies A designer baby is a term used by people to describe the genetic engineering technology that may lead to one day being able to pick and choose characteristics such as; eye and hair colour of an unborn child. At the moment doctors are able to do a wide variety of things such as screening embryos for genetic disorders and are able to select healthy ones. Currently there are two types of reproductive technologies that are legal. The first is used to determine the sex and genetic makeup of the child this is done by choosing the sperm specifically. The second type allows scientists to screen the embryo for any diseases and replace the healthy embryo into the mother’s womb. There is also an option for potential parents to choose the sex of a baby through IVF treatment. In the majority of countries the sex of the baby can only be chosen if the baby is at risk of as some diseases only occur in a particular sex. Whereas in the U.K is it possible for parents to choose the sex of the baby for no reason other than preference. I will now give my reasons why I am for some aspects of genetic engineering. The argument for this type of technology is positive if it is for health reasons. It is very helpful to those who have diseases in their family. This type of treatment can help parents avoid passing on a faulty gene to the unborn child. Some couples aren’t able to have a child without passing on a genetic disease and the child either dying before they are born or dying and suffering at a young age. I agree that changing the genetic makeup of an embryo is a positive thing as it allows these couples to have a healthy child. I will now give my reasons why I am against some aspects of genetic engineering. The argument against would be that any other type of picking a choosing of others factors such as a desirable appearance including hair and eye colour is completely unethical and unnatural. A good case of this is of...