As war continues, Ukraine pays troops to freeze their sperm

As war continues in Ukraine, the nation has begun urging its soldiers to freeze their sperm so that in the event of their deaths, their wives can still have their babies.

Key Takeaways:

• Ukraine is facing a demographic crisis that has been worsened by war.

• The nation now has its lowest birth rate in history at just 0.8-0.9 children per woman, as women are fearful of having children in the middle of a war.

• The country is hoping to turn the birth rate around by freezing the sperm of soldiers for free.

• There are multiple ethical and health issues involved with the use of artificial reproductive technologies.

The Details:

The BBC reported that private fertility businesses began offering to freeze the sperm and eggs of servicemen and women for free in 2022 when the war began, in case the war affected their fertility. In 2023, parliament decided to provide state funding.

"Our soldiers are defending our future, but may lose their own, so we wanted to give them that chance," said MP Oksana Dmitrieva. "It's to support them, so they can use their sperm later."

However, it said all of the frozen sperm and eggs would have to be destroyed if the person died. After public outcry over this stipulation, the law was amended to state that the sperm and eggs would be kept frozen for free for three years after the person's death.

"If women are stressed, they [can] have problems with their periods. It's all linked," said director for the Centre for Reproductive Medicine, Oksana Holikova. "About 60% of my patients are on anti-depressants, including people with panic attacks because of the missiles and drones."

In addition, Ukrainian citizens are intentionally putting off having children because of the war.

But it's not just about the service members being able to start a family even after their deaths. It's also about fixing the nation's demographic crisis arising from a low birth rate, which has been further fueled by the war.

Ukraine is facing its lowest birth rate on record, dropping to 0.8 to 0.9 children per woman.

"We're also thinking about the future and all the young people we've lost," said Dmitrieva. "We need to replace them. This is one tiny step to improve the demographic situation."

She explained that when she visits the soldiers on the frontline of the war, she talks to them about freezing their sperm. About a dozen soldiers have gone to Kyiv's state-run Centre for Reproductive Medicine to freeze their sperm, but the facility believes demand will increase.

"At first, they're really embarrassed," she said, "but we talk and I tell them to tell others, and then they come and they do it. If they have this chance, then why not? It doesn't hurt!"

Why It Matters:

While it may not hurt the men involved, there are risks if women end up undergoing IVF, both for them and for the children who are created via IVF. Women who participate in IVF are at an increased risk of hypertension, preeclampsia, ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, and gestational diabetes mellitus, among other issues,.

In addition, IVF does not guarantee a baby and children created through IVF are at risk of premature birth as well as multiple health conditions, including low birth weight, higher blood pressure, hormonal imbalances and advanced bone age, cardiovascular issues and cerebral palsy, autism spectrum disorder, childhood leukemia, and even future infertility. There are also emotional concerns.

In a book for Anonymous Us, a person conceived through IVF explained, "I am a human being, yet I was conceived with a technique that had its origins in animal husbandry."

There are a host of other issues surrounding IVF, including the grading and destruction of embryos who are deemed "abnormal" and mistakes such as the clinic using the wrong sperm.

For those women who use artificial insemination instead of IVF, the children conceived after the death of a service member will be intentionally denied one of their parents.

The Bottom Line:

One of the tragedies of war is that children are often left orphans or lose one of their parents.

Creating children by artificial means after one of their parents has died, while understandable from the perspective of a grieving spouse, is intentionally creating fatherless or motherless children. It is not without consequence.