(Image Source: LifeNews.com) 

BY ADAM FALK 

You're watching multisource health news analysis from Newsy.

It’s not unreasonable for the child of a sperm donor to have half-siblings. It’s expected. But how many? 2? 10? 20? Try 150.

This story, reported in The New York Times, raised concerns within the donor community about children with extended extended families. One mother tells the Times...

“My daughter knows her donor’s number for this very reason. … She’s been in school with numerous kids who were born through donors. She’s had crushes on boys who are donor children. It’s become part of sex education.”

And a writer for HULIQ agrees, saying it’s important for parents to talk to their children about  their donors.

“Progressive sperm donor parents make certain their children know their sperm donor numbers. When interacting and attracted to other young adults conceived via sperm donation, parents encourage their children to learn their potential boyfriend or girlfriend's sperm donor numbers as well. Progressive thinking and action, the parents are aware, prevent possible incestuous relationships.”

The Times reports-- an estimated 30,000-60,000 children are born each year from sperm donation, but only 20-40% of their mothers register the birth. This caused Wendy Kramer to start a site called donorsiblingregistry.com. She says...

“We need to publicly ask the questions ‘What is in the best interests of the child to be born?’ and ‘Is it fair to bring a child into the world who will have no access to knowing about one half of their genetics, medical history and ancestry?’”

Critics are asking the same questions. According to IB Times, some are looking to the legal limits in place in Britain and France on how many children a sperm donor can father.

“Advocates for sperm donor laws and regulations say donors are protected by an anonymity that appears eerily familiar to the internet's earliest days when public users signed on with fictitious monikers.”

Why allow so many children by the same donor in the first place? Jezebel says simply, sperm banks profit from the system. However, the article points out many clinics would likely change their standards if asked. But still, the writer is reminded of one exception where Forbes...

“...tells the story of a father-son team who started a ‘charitable organization’ providing free sperm, then tried to claim tax-exempt status for it. Eighty-eight percent of the sperm apparently came from the son himself. … Having this guy's genes spread liberally across the country sounds pretty horrifying — but weirdo tax-evader or not, it's probably not a good idea for anybody to have 150 kids.”

So what’s the magic number? According to a report released in Britain in 1984, 10 children per donor.
 

'Like' Newsy on Facebook for updates in your news feed.

Get more multisource video news analysis from Newsy

Transcript by Newsy.