If you celebrate Thanksgiving or Christmas with a roast turkey dinner, you may be familiar with the baster – a supersize kitchen utensil used to moisten meat while it’s cooking. But the baster has long had another association: as a tool for self-insemination. Where did the idea come from and have babies ever actually been conceived this way? Christine Ro digs into how the turkey-baster insemination myth took hold, and whether it has any grounding in reality.
It was during the first phase of the Covid-19 pandemic. I was restless. And through a series of rabbit-hole discoveries, I became slightly obsessed with turkey basters: kitchen utensils that resemble oversized syringes but are specifically for keeping meat moist during roasting.
It started with a stranger reaching out via Facebook, to tell me that he thought we might have the same father. This discovery of a half-brother made me reflect on my general apathy about genetic origins. As the daughter of a Korean, the stepdaughter of a Native American, the stepsister of a Filipina, and the adoptive aunt of a Mexican, I’ve never put too much stock into connections based on heredity.
But for my half-brother, as for so many people around the world, this chromosomal link meant something. I wanted to better understand what I was missing, and this curiosity took me in some unexpected directions.
One of the webinars I attended during that early, shut-in, Zoom-heavy portion of the pandemic was called ‘Curious connections: the social life of egg and sperm donation’. It was part of a sociology research project at the University of Manchester.
As part of this session, Kathryn Almack, a sociologist at the University of Hertfordshire, wondered about the origins of the “turkey-baster myth”. According to this social lore, turkey basters aren’t just useful for cooking, but also for transferring sperm from a man into a woman, without any sexual contact being necessary.
“I wonder where that turkey-baster myth originates; from my research, more commonly, women using known donor sperm use a small syringe,” Almack mused. The couples she interviewed in her research “said they used syringes and laughed at the idea of turkey basters, given the small amount of sperm per donation!”
And with that, I set out to find out more about the turkey-baster myth. It’s been a nicely low-stakes, idle-curiosity background project for the last couple of years: visiting archives, reading publications by pioneers of self-insemination, and learning more about women’s experiences of managing their own fertility.
“The couples interviewed ‘said they used syringes and laughed at the idea of turkey basters, given the small amount of sperm per donation!’”
It’s become clear that a major reason the myth persists is that the “turkey-baster insemination plot” is a pop-culture trope, sometimes comic but other times violent and disturbing. In the soap ‘Jane the Virgin’ the baster is big and silly; in the horror film ‘Don’t Breathe’ it’s terrifying. In both cases the baster has a dramatic visual presence.
At the same time, one specific type of visual culture – pornography – has led to some widespread misconceptions of just how much semen is produced per ejaculation. Let’s just say that an eye dropper or teaspoon is generally big enough.
Women have often had to be resourceful and innovative when it comes to getting pregnant. And, though their use has been exaggerated, women have certainly tried using turkey basters as vehicles for sperm. “I do believe at-home inseminations happened using turkey basters or the like,” explains Lisa Jean Moore, a medical sociologist at the State University of New York. “People also have been known to put semen on diaphragms and then insert them.”
Moore herself has personal experience of self-insemination, using a syringe. “I think that, depending on where a person lives and their healthcare access, syringes for medical use can be hard to come by and people make do with at-hand technologies.”
While artificial insemination goes back centuries, the “turkey-baster era” of self-insemination dates to around the 1970s. There was plenty of personal experimentation involved, for instance within the Feminist Self-Insemination Group in London.
Feminist and lesbian groups were especially influential in spreading the message that conception didn’t have to be overly medicalised, costly or inaccessible. This was important to groups of women, including single and queer women, who were judged especially harshly by a moralistic medical establishment.
“A symbol of domesticity became a tool for taking control of one’s own reproduction, a welcome contrast to the stories of doctors inseminating women without their knowledge.”
Some editions of ‘Our Bodies, Ourselves’, a seminal book on women’s sexual health that started publication in the 1970s, helped to spread the idea that turkey basters could be a tool for reproductive agency. A symbol of domesticity became a tool for taking control of one’s own reproduction, a welcome contrast to the stories of doctors inseminating women without their knowledge or equating artificial insemination to adultery or worse. Using ordinary household implements also allowed self-inseminators to evade the scrutiny of would-be meddlers.
As one woman marvelled in the 1979 book ‘Up Against the Clock: Career Women Speak on the Choice to Have Children’: “I heard about a group of lesbian women on the West Coast who were inseminating themselves using a turkey baster. That’s right, the kind you keep in your kitchen. I know it sounds a little strange, but I thought it was a wonderful idea… So I used a turkey baster and there was nothing to it…”
At-home insemination has become much more normalised and precise since then, with a dizzying array of products and resources available for the self-inseminator. Turkey basters, meanwhile, have generally returned to their single purpose in the kitchen.
Yet “turkey baster” remains a kind of shorthand. It’s sometimes used to describe all forms of self-insemination, even hundreds of years before the turkey baster was even invented, and including the use of a syringe or cervical cap rather than a baster.
Regardless of how common it ever was, the turkey-baster myth remains a useful reference point. It’s also a reminder that family units come in all sorts of configurations. That’s helpful for people like me, who have unresolved feelings about the genetic bonds we share with people we didn’t grow up with.
Despite there being no direct connection, my research into turkey basters has strangely become a way to channel some of my questions about family. My half-brother and I now exchange halting messages a few times a year in an effort to keep some sort of tenuous connection flickering. It’s not much, but it’s a start.
Steven is a photographer at Wellcome. His photography takes inspiration from the museum’s rich and varied collections. He enjoys collaborating on creative projects and taking them to imaginative places.
The idea of using a turkey baster to get pregnant has become popularized in movies and TV shows, but does it actually work? While a kitchen turkey baster is not recommended, a similar process called intracervical insemination (ICI) or intravaginal insemination (IVI) can be effective for some people
What Is a Turkey Baster Method?
The “turkey baster method” refers to artificial insemination that can be done at home It involves injecting sperm into the vagina in hopes of achieving pregnancy The term originated because some people have actually used a kitchen turkey baster for this purpose in the past.
However, it’s not recommended to use an actual turkey baster from your kitchen. Turkey basters could contain bacteria or chemicals that are harmful for sperm and the reproductive tract. There are also concerns about the materials and shape not being ideal for conception.
Intracervical Insemination Explained
Instead of a turkey baster, intracervical insemination uses a syringe or specialized device like the Mosie Baby Kit to insert sperm. This allows the sperm to be placed right at the cervix opening, which is the doorway to the uterus.
The Mosie Kit contains a soft, rounded syringe designed specifically for comfortably depositing sperm high up near the cervix for optimal chances. Syringes from a pharmacy could also potentially be used.
The ICI process is functionally similar to sexual intercourse, except that a syringe is used rather than a penis to introduce the sperm. It can be performed at home or in a doctor’s office.
Who Is a Candidate for ICI?
ICI may make sense for different situations:
- Lesbian couples or single women using donor sperm
- Heterosexual couples where the male partner has mild fertility issues like low sperm count
- Couples struggling with sexual intercourse due to erectile dysfunction or pain
- Those pursuing IVF who want to try ICI first as a less invasive option
ICI is only recommended for those with no major fertility issues beyond needing assistance with getting sperm to meet the egg. Those with blocked tubes, no ovulation, or very poor sperm may need to consider IVF instead.
How Effective Is ICI?
Research shows ICI success rates are around 10-15% per cycle when performed at optimal timing. After 3 cycles, success rates can reach up to 70%. However, many factors impact individual chances. Consulting a doctor is advised if pregnancy doesn’t occur after 6 months of attempts.
Proper ovulation timing, sperm quality, and technique all play important roles. Those new to ICI may take a couple tries to get the hang of it. Working with a sperm bank and tracking ovulation using OPKs or basal body temperature can help.
Is Unprotected Sex Better Than ICI?
For couples with no known fertility issues, studies show natural conception success rates are 20-25% per cycle. So unprotected sex does tend to be more effective than ICI overall.
However, ICI can still be preferable for some situations:
- Same sex couples using donor sperm
- Avoiding transmission of STDs like HIV or herpes
- Reducing performance anxiety and sexual discomfort
What About IVF Compared to ICI?
IVF involves fertilizing the egg outside the body then transferring it back in, whereas ICI relies on natural internal fertilization.
Success rates with IVF are significantly higher at around 40-60% per transfer, but it’s also a much more complex, invasive, and expensive process. Most doctors recommend attempting ICI for 6 months before considering IVF.
Should I Try the Turkey Baster Method?
While actual turkey basters are not advised, intracervical insemination can offer an accessible way to conceive at home for some. It may be worth discussing with your doctor if you don’t have major fertility obstacles and want to try getting pregnant without intercourse.
Tracking ovulation precisely and using a purpose-designed device like Mosie Baby can help optimize your ICI success. Just be sure to follow instructions carefully.
Though not as effective as sex or IVF, ICI can provide a non-invasive conception option that fits your personal needs and family goals. Be patient, keep trying each cycle, and consult your doctor if pregnancy doesn’t happen after 6 months.
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Getting pregnant on the cheap
FAQ
What is the success rate of turkey baster pregnancy?
The current industry success rate is between 10 and 15 percent per menstrual cycle for those using the intracervical insemination method (ICI). This involves injecting semen vaginally close to the cervix (sometimes called the “turkey baster method”).
Can you get pregnant injecting sperm syringe?
- The success rate for IUI is around 18% per cycle for women under 35.
- The success rate for home insemination is slightly lower than IUI.
- The success rate varies by age, fertility, and other factors.
How much sperm does it take to get pregnant?
- Sperm cells compete with each other to reach the egg.
- The female immune system can attack sperm as foreign cells.
- Sperm can be damaged by their shape or motility.
- The outer shell of the egg can thicken and harden as women age.
How to insert sperm for pregnancy at home?
Slowly and gently glide the syringe or catheter into the vagina until it is close to the cervix. Very slowly inject the sperm to coat the outside of the cervix. The woman should try to have an orgasm with clitoral stimulation, but without penetration.
Can you get pregnant with a turkey baster?
The Turkey Baster Method is the most common way of artificial insemination to get pregnant via artificial insemination at home. More often than not you do NOT actually use a turkey baster but instead, a disposable syringe. What supplies do I need? You need the following supplies for artificial insemination at home:
When should I use turkey baster baby?
The “Turkey Baster Baby” method is best used during your fertile period, i.e., Ovulation Day plus the 4-5 days leading up to it. The success rate for the turkey baster insemination method, or ICI (intracervical insemination), is approximately 37.9% after six treatment cycles in a Netherlands-based study.
Can a doctor perform a turkey baster?
Earlier on this method could be performed at a doctor’s office. What is a turkey baster? Turkey baster refers to artificial insemination mostly done at home. It is also called the intracervical insemination (ICI) method.
Should I buy a turkey baster If I have infertility?
If you’re experiencing infertility, artificial insemination is typically a good place to start because of its low cost, reduced side effects, and lower health risks. Don’t go buy the turkey baster though; your doctor can help you find an at-home insemination kit that will come with the necessary tools, no turkey baster needed!
What is the success rate of turkey baster insemination?
The success rate for the turkey baster insemination method, or ICI (intracervical insemination), is approximately 37.9% after six treatment cycles in a Netherlands-based study. However, a successful pregnancy using this at-home insemination method depends on a number of factors, including age and sperm quality.
Can a ‘turkey baster baby’ boost live birth rates?
As you can see, the “Turkey Baster Baby” method is a quick and simple way to inseminate yourself. What’s more, a “refined” version, dubbed intrauterine insemination (IUI), was shown to boost live birth rates by almost three times in couples experiencing unexplained infertility, according to a 2017 study by the University of Auckland, New Zealand.