College students ease lack of sperm donations
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Hospital staff check devices for sperm donation. |
A growing number of college students have become sperm donors in Guangzhou, thanks to improved attitudes and increased subsidies.
Sources with the Guangdong human sperm bank said that more than 95 percent of sperm donors are college students, whose donations are helping to ease the sperm shortage that has been troubling infertile couples for several years.
Only healthy men between the ages of 22 and 45 can give sperm once in their lifetime, according to the Ministry of Health. Gay men and foreign nationals are prohibited.
Men must visit a sperm bank three times for initial tests and undergo blood screening if their sample makes the grade. They then have to return about 10 times to donate.
A qualified donor can receive as much as 3,000 yuan ($448) in subsidies if he finishes the donation process, sources with the bank said.
"It doesn't mean they are selling sperm. We are providing meals and transport fees and compensation for loss of working time," said Tang Lixin, director of the Guangdong sperm bank.
The Guangdong institution, one of 10 sperm banks in the country, received more than 900 donors last year, an increase of almost 100 percent over the average of previous years.
"Some students donate sperm for the increased subsidies, but most regard the donation as an act of charity to help those needing artificial insemination," Tang said.
Three years ago, as many as 80 percent of infertile couples failed to find sperm donors due to the limited supply, according to Tang.
In China, about 10 percent of couples, many of whom live in big cities, are infertile, according to the bank.
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