CBC NEWS

A demographic time bomb

The ability to determine the sex of a fetus — and therefore to abort those that are unwanted — is a demographic time bomb that has already left parts of Asia with too many men and not enough women.

Now, a couple of recent studies suggest the phenomenon could be on its way to the West, where it is sure to reignite the abortion debate here. Researchers in the United States and Britain have uncovered evidence that prenatal sex selection testing looks to be having an impact on gender demographics among some members of the East and South Asian communities.