Infertility in the Modern World: Present and Future Prospects (Biosocial Society Symposium Series, Series Number 12)

As we enter the twenty-first century, a number of medical, environmental, and social changes have profoundly affected human reproduction. This book discusses some of the more dramatic changes in an accessible manner, illustrating the ways in which human biology and culture can affect fertility. It provides a unique interdisciplinary perspective on the subject. Topics of discussion include medical technological advances that equip us with potential cures for many causes of infertility; diseases, such as AIDS, that have a devastating impact on the reproductive and social lives of humans; increasing industrialization and the development of fabricated materials that pollute our environment in unforeseen ways with possibly devastating effects on human health and fertility; and social revolutions that profoundly alter human relationships, such as nonmarital unions between heterosexual couples, same-sex relationships, and adoption and surrogacy.

Medical, environmental and social changes have all profoundly affected human reproduction. This book provides an accessible, interdisciplinary perspective on the subject. Topics include medical technologies that can offer possible cures for infertility; diseases such as AIDS, and their impact on the reproductive and social lives of humans; the potentially devastating effects that environmental pollutants may have on human health and fertility; as well as social revolutions that profoundly alter human relationships, such as non-marital unions between heterosexual couples, same-sex relationships, adoption and surrogacy which are becoming increasingly common.