I was just pondering this over surrogate mothers..?

Question

If a woman gives her eggs to be fertilized within another woman, can the baby inherit anything from the surrogate?

Answer 1

Genetically, no. Other than things like smoking, drinking, etc. I would say that it's possible to "inherit" certain tastes for foods. It's been proven that mothers who eat certain foods during pregnancy and while breastfeeding have children who also have a liking toward the same foods.

Also, stress is a factor. It could cause nerve problems in baby if the mother is over-stressed.

Baby may develop a liking to her voice and possibly her tastes in music (lol) although there is no concrete evidence.

Answer 2

this is like a nature verses nurture situation. The Nature (all biological and DNA) will come strictly from the egg and sperm.

The Nature (environment etc.) can influence the baby but probably not much. Someone already mentioned that if the surrogate mother has a lot of stress or eats poorly it can affect the baby.

Here are some things that the baby can get from the surrogate mother .. but they are not "inherited" : a taste for certain foods and a preference for certain songs if the surrogate mother sings a particular lullaby alot while pregnant.

The foods part come from my BabyCenter magazine. it said, "As he slurps amniotic fluid (four cups a day by the time he's born), he's exposed to a sea of flavors absorbed from the foods you eat -- nature's way of familiarizing him with the tastes of the culture he'll grow up in."

Answer 3

The baby won't inherit anything from the surrogate mother because what is implanted is a fertilized egg that already has its genetic make-up.

The prenatal environment provided by the surrogate mother, however, could affect the development of the baby. (In other words, if the mother has a lot of stress hormones or doesn't eat well she'll create a less than ideal prenatal environment, which could affect the development of the fetus in any number of ways.)

Answer 4

No, all the surrogate basically is, is an incubator. The baby gets no DNA from the surrogate, unless the surrogate has been inseminated herself rather than the "biological" mother.

Answer 5

whoever gives the eggs is who the child inherits the traits from. the other person is just a holding vessle.

Answer 6

The genes are in the sperm and egg, so no.