Why Are There So Many Requirements to Donate Eggs?
Egg donation requirements and why they exist
If you’ve considered becoming an egg donor, you’ve probably noticed the many requirements to donate eggs. You may have wondered why some of these requirements matter. Egg donation is a complex procedure that involves the health and well-being of the donors, intended parents, and donor-conceived children. Egg donation criteria help protect everyone involved. Here are some of the basic requirements to qualify as an egg donor and the reasoning behind each one.
Donors Must Be Between the Ages of 21-29
Studies have shown that both the quality and quantity of eggs decrease over time. People are most fertile in their early to mid-twenties. Egg quality and quantity steadily decrease through your early 30s, and then drop off rapidly after age 35. The goal of egg donation is to provide several healthy eggs for intended parents to use in embryo development, while safeguarding the donor’s health during the process. The age window of 21-29 years old provides the best opportunity for retrieving several healthy eggs during a donation cycle.
Egg Donor Candidates Must Have a Body Mass Index (BMI) Between 19-29
BMI is a measure of body fat, calculated using height and weight. It’s important to note that by itself, BMI is not an indicator of your overall health, and we don’t use it to evaluate our donors’ general health status. However, studies have shown a relationship between BMI and other aspects of the donation process. For instance, being underweight or obese can affect ovulation, reponse to medication, and how your body reacts to anesthesia. The BMI requirement exists to protect our egg donors’ health and well-being during the egg donation process.
Egg Donors Are Required to Receive Physical and Mental Health Screenings
It’s important for egg donors to be in good general health as they go through the egg donation process. This can help keep them healthy throughout the cycle, and improve their recovery times after the egg retrieval. In addition, egg donors provide half the genetic material of a donor-conceived child. This means the child can inherit health conditions or genetic disorders from the egg donor.
The physical, mental health, and genetic screenings requirements for egg donation help provide a complete picture of your family medical history, make sure you are healthy enough to donate, and let intended parents make informed decisions about their choice of donor. Finally, the mental health screenings also help ensure that you fully understand the emotional and psychological aspects of egg donation and are ready to make an informed choice.
Egg Donation Candidates Cannot Use Illicit Drugs, Tobacco, or Nicotine Products
All of these substances have been shown to negatively impact ovulation, egg quality, and egg quantity. This includes all nicotine products, including vape pens, e-cigarettes, and hookah. If you used to smoke or use nicotine products but have quit, contact us to find out if you can qualify to donate eggs.
Requirements to Donate Eggs Keep the Process Safe and Convenient
Egg donor requirements help keep everyone in the donation process healthy and safe. At the same time, they also provide intended parents with the best chance of conceiving from healthy donor eggs. Egg donation involves other commitments, like the ability to regularly make appointments and the agreement to abstain from sexual intercourse with partners with sperm during the donation cycle. You can read about our full list of egg donor requirements here. If you have any questions, we encourage you to contact us. And if you meet these egg donor requirements and want to become a donor, apply today!