The Pros And Cons Of Human Cloning

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Mankind has always been fascinated with science-fiction idea of cloning, hoping to create copies of living organisms for medicine, or research, or personal gain. This idea, now closer to reality than science-fiction, has caused much debate worldwide. The unresolved question still lingers: Should human cloning be allowed? There are various views on the issue, but I believe that the cloning of humans, for any purpose, should not be permitted for multiple reasons.

First, cloning reduces genetic diversity. Genetic diversity is the number of different genetic combinations that are available in a given gene pool. Evolution is based on the mixing and matching of genes, which are keeping the gene pool alive. In humans, through natural reproduction, a new being is created with a mix of genes from both of its parents. With cloning, one person's DNA is taken and used to create new life. There is no crossing over between the parents' chromosomes, and the clone turns out genetically identical to its original. If this was to happen on a large scale, and everyone began to have similar genes, we could be prone to many diseases and health risks. There are many genetic combinations available for humans, and we have a high genetic diversity right now. If our genetic diversity is lowered, due to the lack of mixing genes in cloning, our disease resistance as a whole will decrease. The human race could be weakened and could suffer from many problems.

Second, cloning is dangerous and poses many health risks. People claim that it will lead to medical miracles and cures, but as of now cloning has an extremely high failure rate and has not yet been proven to be effective in treating anything. 95 to 99 percent of cloned organisms die before ...

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... adopted as a baby, the parents have the ability to raise the child just like they would raise their own. While the child may not have the same genetic make-up as his or her parents, he or she would develop similar traits just by the way he or she is raised. Another option would be to use donor gametes or other options offered to infertile couples. There are options outside of cloning to provide childless parents with children.

Just because science gives man the ability to do something does not mean it should be done. Cloning tampers with the natural way of life, and causes more problems than it has solved. Many countries, including France, Germany, and Switzerland, have already banned human cloning, and other countries are in debate over the issue. The issue may never be resolved completely, but I believe human cloning should not be allowed at all.

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