It is not uncommon for people to do what they think is the right thing, only to be smacked in between the eyes with the unintended consequences of that action. I've been thinking a lot about that lately, especially as it relates to embryotic stem cell research and the bird flu. Odd paring, yes, but here me out on this.
The goal, however realistic or unrealistic it may be, of embryotic stem cell research is to prolong the life of those humans who are walking on this planet right now. Setting aside the moral issues, it would seem to be a good idea, right? Nature has a funny way of making sure we humans don't over extend our stay though. So, stripping away the moral questions, what could be the unintended consequences of helping millions upon millions of us live longer through treatments developed from embryotic stem cells (or adult stem cells for that matter)?
Well, despite the fact that we have done a good job of bottling up former mass killers like the plague, small pox, and typhoid, to name a few, there are still many other illnesses out there that are capable of killing large numbers of people during pandemic infections. What happens when you rapidly increase the number of people who are most vulnerable to communicable diseases? You invite outbreaks of those diseases, and the outbreaks would logically spread beyond those vulnerable populations to the healthier populations.
I'm not saying that we shouldn't investigate ways to prolong human life, and I'm not saying we shouldn't look at the ways adult stem cells can help prolong life. What I am saying is that we may be setting ourselves up for an era of pandemics. This is really a time where we should be looking two steps ahead to in order to try to prevent the unintended consequences of our actions. I don't believe we are doing that right now, and despite my protestations over the bird flu scare stories, I think we are woefully unprepared for pandemic illnesses.
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