Campaign to stop women knowing the sex of baby until 30 weeks 'to stop them aborting female foetuses'

By Daily Mail Reporter
Updated: 03:52 EST, 17 January 2012


A leading physician says doctors should not be able to tell pregnant women the sex of their baby until 30 weeks into a pregnancy.

By not revealing the gender, doctors would prevent abortions that are carried out because of the sex of the baby, says Dr. Rajendra Kale, interim editor-in-chief of the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

He said 'sex selection' through aborting female foetuses is a major issue in several Asian countries where there is a preference for a son.

A right to choose? A pregnant woman watches her first baby ultrasound scan

A right to choose? A pregnant woman watches her first baby ultrasound scan

A woman has a right to information about herself when it comes to her health and medical care, Dr. Kale argues.

The sex of the foetus, however, is medically irrelevant and has no impact on the care of the unborn child or the pregnant woman, msnbc reports.

The only exception should be in cases of rare illnesses, he added.

In an editorial in the lastest issue of CMAJ, Mr Kale wrote: 'A pregnant woman being told the sex of the fetus at ultrasonography at a time when an unquestioned abortion is possible is the starting point' of sex selection.'

Major issue: Some societies want baby boys and use abortions for sex selection

Major issue: Some societies want baby boys and use abortions for sex selection

He said the practice of sex selection may also be done by some immigrants in Canada and the United States.

Dr. Kale, who hails from Mumbai, India, said research has shown that immigrants from India, China and Korea, have aborted female foetuses, citing the number of couples with two daughters whose third child is a son.

Pregnant women in America generally get an ultrasound scan between 18 and 22 weeks of their pregnancy to check that there are no problems.

His call to end sex selection is causing controversy in the medical world.

The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada both agree that sex selection is unethical.

But they also believe not telling the woman the sex of the foetus, if she asks, is also unethical.


 

Comments (9)

Share what you think

The comments below have not been moderated.

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

We are no longer accepting comments on this article.

Who is this week's top commenter? Find out now