The clinic banning dyslexic donors

If you want your child to grow up to be the next Sir Richard Branson, Steve Jobs, Ruby Wax and Benjamin Zephaniah, you might want to give this sperm bank a miss.

According to The Guardian, the UK’s London Sperm Bank has been screening for conditions including dyslexia and dyspraxia – ‘diseases’ suffered by some of the greatest minds of our time.

Britain’s largest sperm bank has explained its turning away of donors with dyslexia as attempts to “minimise the risk of transmitting common genetic diseases or malformations to any children born”.

According to The Guardian, the clinic’s leaflet to donors lists a series of conditions the clinic screens for, including attention deficit disorder (ADD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder [ADHD], autism, Asperger syndrome, dyslexia and the motor disorder dyspraxia.

Shot of a beautiful pregnant woman with the sun drawn onto her belly against the background of the ocean

Following an investigation by The Guardian, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has issued a ‘please explain’ to the clinic, asking for clarification of its literature and policies.

According to the UK’s Dyslexia Foundation the exclusion is sending the message that dyslexics shouldn’t be in society, and this might prevent some people who suspect they may be dyslexic asking for help.

In response, a spokesperson for the London Sperm Bank, told The Guardian: “The HFEA has been in touch with us. In response we will be reviewing all our practices and protocols.”

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