Considering Donating Your Eggs To Help Others? There Are A Few Things To Consider First

Whether you have a deep-seated desire to help women become mothers who would not otherwise be able to do so, or you would like to make some extra money, donating your eggs is one way to do either. Thanks to the modern advances in fertility medicine, fertile eggs can be harvested from a healthy female, fertilized, and then implanted into a female who cannot produce a fertile egg on her own. If you have been considering this idea for a while, you probably have a lot of questions. Take a look at a few things you should know about egg donation before you decide if this is something you would be willing to do. 

Your age may prevent you from donating your eggs. 

You may assume that because you are a female with a healthy reproductive system, you will automatically be eligible to donate your eggs. However, there are some requirements involved that most fertility clinics set forth before they allow a donor to participate, so not everyone will be considered for egg donation, especially when it comes to age. For the most part, egg donation is only possible at the peak of a woman's reproductive lifetime. Therefore, you may only be able to donate your eggs if you are under the age of 32, which is when the gradual decline of fertility usually begins. 

Donating your eggs may require you to be willing to take fertility treatments. 

Before harvesting your eggs, doctors will need to ensure that your body produces an egg that is as healthy and fertile as possible. Because of this, women who do decide to donate their eggs will oftentimes be required to take some form of fertility treatment to coincide with their reproductive cycle. These treatments may include injections, hormones, and vitamin supplements known to support healthy egg production. 

You will have the option to remain anonymous if you choose. 

If you want to donate eggs but do not want any of the recipients to know who you are, you do have that option. Pretty much all egg donation centers like Missouri Center for Reproductive Medicine will allow you to remain completely anonymous if you prefer. Keep in mind, however, by donating your eggs, you will have to share personal traits about yourself because this is what recipients will look for when choosing an egg for themselves. So things like your hair and eye color, height, and medical history will have to be openly shared.