Sperm Donors in the Netherlands Fathered More Than 25 Children Each, New Data Reveals

April 15, 2025

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(New York Times) – The numbers raise concerns about the risk of genetic anomalies as those children eventually seek partners and give birth.

Somewhere in the Netherlands, there are men who have unknowingly fathered dozens of children through sperm donation. At least one man has sired up to 125 children.

Those are the startling conclusions of a national registry to track the number of sperm donors in the Netherlands. Initial data from the registry, released this week, identified 85 mass donors: men to whom more than 25 descendants can be traced. (Read More)