Public treats risks for low intelligence and heart disease similarly when selecting embryos

Public opinion on using genetic screening to avoid medical conditions and select non-medical traits appears more permissive than previously thought. Researchers found that when confronted with concrete reproductive choices, people tend to weigh non-medical traits just as heavily as medical ones. These findings, published in Nature Human Behaviour, suggest the distinction between medical and non-medical traits blurs when individuals make reproductive decisions.

Preimplantation genetic testing during in vitro fertilization involves extracting cells from an embryo to analyze genetic material, while polygenic testing examines thousands of genetic variations simultaneously. Instead of identifying a single genetic mutation, polygenic testing provides a statistical risk estimate for complex characteristics like heart disease or intelligence.

Initial surveys showed the public is willing to consider screening for complex traits, with a 2023 study indicating broad acceptance in the United States. A 2025 survey suggested Singaporeans were even more receptive to using embryo screening for educational and cognitive outcomes. The new study led by Edmond Awad and Julian Savulescu tested whether stated moral attitudes align with actual decisions when balancing medical risks against personal traits.

The researchers found that participants still chose embryos with lower statistical risks for undesirable non-medical traits, even when presented with hypothetical scenarios. This indicates that the moral distinction between medical and non-medical traits becomes less clear-cut in real-life decision-making.