Claims circulating on social media about intellectual requirements for sperm donors in Denmark are not true. Only one bank in the country, Donor Network, has set a minimum IQ threshold of 85 for prospective fathers. A post on X stating that Denmark has introduced a minimum IQ threshold of 85 for sperm donors has caused confusion, disputes, and memes.
In fact, there is no legal requirement in Denmark regarding the IQ level of donors, although they must undergo an interview and disclose their medical history to check for the presence or absence of genetic risk factors.
In the country known for its liberal sperm donation laws, there are at least a dozen banks operating, despite the absence of a corresponding public registry. The two largest internationally recognized ones are the European Sperm Bank and Cryos International. The latter is referred to as "the largest sperm and egg bank in the world."
Cryos International claims that donors must be between 18 and 45 years old, they must be physically and mentally healthy, undergo an interview with a lawyer and a medical examination, and reside in Denmark at the time of blood donation. According to Danish regulations, one donor can "make happy" 12 families.
Only in 2011 did Cryos International introduce another requirement for donors: red-haired individuals were denied, as the company’s founder stated that the bank already has enough biological material.
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The European Sperm Bank has the same age requirements and states that its donors must undergo a "thorough screening process" to identify serious hereditary diseases and sexually transmitted infections.
And although it is incorrect that all Danish sperm banks have IQ requirements, one of them does: this is Donor Network, a sperm bank headquartered in the city of Aarhus.
The Cube, the Euronews fact-checking team, contacted the CEO of Donor Network, who confirmed that this sperm bank has set an IQ threshold of 85 and does not allow individuals with a criminal past to donate.
"As far as we know, we are the only bank in the world with such requirements," said Jakub Knudsen to The Cube.
Confusion and memes arose from an article written in November by journalists from the Danish broadcasting company DR, which discusses Donor Network. At the end of November, a post appeared online quoting this article, after which it was said that the requirements of Donor Network apply to all of Denmark.
Sparks of Controversy
While social media is filled with memes about the requirements of Donor Network, medical ethics specialists have pondered this topic.
According to DR, specialists assert that screening donors for certain hereditary diseases reduces the likelihood of negative outcomes. A known case involved a Danish sperm donor with a pathogenic DNA mutation that increases the risk of cancer, who fathered 52 children between 2007 and 2018.
According to Daniela Kutas, an associate professor of medical ethics at Lund University, screening potential donors for IQ and criminal records raises questions, as it implies that higher IQ and the absence of a criminal record may be genetically determined.
It is generally agreed that while the IQ of parents may influence a child's intelligence, environmental factors play a primary role in shaping cognitive development. According to Jakub Knudsen, scientific literature shows that "IQ is a strong predictor not only of academic success and income but also of mortality, and the risk of developing Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder." According to available statistics, it has a high heritability of 50-80%.
"We would not feel comfortable offering these individuals as donors, nor would we recommend them to our patients," concluded the CEO of Donor Network.
