One of the most common things that people comment on regarding egg donation is the BMI requirement. There is understandably a lot of confusion around why there is a BMI […]
One of the most common things that people comment on regarding egg donation is the BMI requirement. There is understandably a lot of confusion around why there is a BMI requirement for egg donation.
Here is a breakdown of why this requirement exists, and why it really has nothing to do with physical appearance, and everything to do with safety and health:
BMI, which stands for Body Mass Index, is a calculation of weight relative to height. There are lots of online calculators that help you calculate your BMI.
There are general ranges of BMI that are considered healthy, overweight, and underweight. However, because BMI does not account for things like muscle build or muscle mass, there are some people who fall into the “overweight” category that may still be considered healthy. That’s why it’s important to discuss BMI with your doctor, to better understand what a healthy weight looks like for you.
At AsiaWest, we typically require donors to have a BMI between 18-28.
To be clear, egg donor BMI requirements have nothing to do with appearance and everything to do with the safety and health of the egg donors. We are an egg donation agency, not a medical facility, so we leave all of the medication and IVF guidance to the clinics. Most IVF clinics will not work with donors below or above a certain BMI, due to risks with the IVF medication and procedure.
One risk for donors over a certain BMI, is the presence of more adipose tissue (fat tissue), which can affect egg development and make egg retrieval more difficult. The egg quality of eggs retrieved may also be impacted.
On the flip side, donors with low BMI are also not always great candidates for egg donation. Donors with low BMI may be at increased risk for developing OHSS (Ovarian Hyper Stimulation Syndrome).
At the end of the day, we want to do everything we can to make sure the egg donation is as successful as it can be for both the intended family and the egg donor. This means doing what we can do make sure the donor is as safe as possible, and that the family has the best possible chance of retrieving high quality eggs.
We are always happy to chat about our donor requirements, so if you have any questions please feel free to reach out to us by phone or email!