Dragon Babies In the Making! By Sonja Kristiansen, MD on January 31, 2012

Surely, you've seen this recently? The Chinese New Year has arrived, and this year, deemed The Year of The Dragon by Chinese astrologers, is supposed to be especially auspicious for having babies.

The Wall Street Journal says that "dragon babies" -- those born from now until February 9, 2013 -- are supposed to be strong, smart, and lucky. Quite a combination! What parent wouldn't want those things for their child? Even if you think astrology is nothing more than silly fun...

But here's the modern twist on an ancient tale: Couples are actually taking advantage of assisted reproductive technology to boost their chances of getting pregnant with a Dragon Baby. In the article, one egg donation agency reports they've increased the number of donors with Chinese ancestry to prepare for an expected rise in intended parents.

What we're talking about here is a new kind of family planning, people taking full advantage of the availability and increasing reliability of fertility treatment success, even if there are no fertility problems. "But Dr. Kristiansen," you're wondering, "isn't IVF for fertile people going to extremes?" IVF is the most direct means of assisted conception for many people, but artificial insemination can work as well for some.

So if you want to have a Dragon Baby, you need to institute a plan and aim for conceiving by mid-May of this year. My staff at Houston Fertility Center will be happy to assist -- even if you think astrology is just for fun.

~ Dr. Sonja Kristiansen M.D.