Would Kylie Jenner even be allowed to act as Kim Kardashian's surrogate?

September 29, 2017 6:51 PM

This is just a fan theory and there is no evidence to support this other than the coincidence in timelines.

By now, you’ve probably heard that

As a result, the rumor mill has been swirling, with one of the latest stories speculating that 20-year-old Kylie may actually be her big sister Kim Kardashian’s surrogate.

Kylie is reportedly about four months along in her pregnancy, which means she's due at around the same time that Kim and her husband Kanye West are allegedly expecting their third child via surrogate. As a result, fans are freaking out about the theory on Twitter.

Worth pointing out: vThat said, would it even be possible for Kylie to be Kim’s surrogate?

The American Society of Reproductive Medicine, which is considered the authority in reproductive medicine, has issued guidelines about surrogacy. In the guidelines, the organization says that gestational surrogates “must be of legal age” and “preferably between the ages of 21 and 45 years.” Ideally, the surrogate should have had at least one uncomplicated pregnancy that was carried to term, the organization says.

Kylie meets none of these criteria but, it’s important to note, these are just guidelines—not laws. Still, "all good agencies will follow those guidelines," says Fredrick Gaston, founder of surrogacy agency Omega Family Global.

But Gaston says there's a little wiggle room when it comes to age. He's had surrogates who are over the age of 45 who have been cleared by a doctor. "This is usually a special case where the surrogate worked with the parents in the past as a surrogate, or the surrogate is a close friend or relative of the parents," he says. He's also had surrogates who are under the age of 21. "We did have a surrogate who began the process when she was 19 to begin," he says. In that case, the surrogate lived with her mother who had also worked as a surrogate multiple times, was very comfortable with the process, had lots of support, and was psychologically counseled beforehand, he says.

If Kylie satisfied all of the other requirements and she's mentally prepared for the experience, "I would see this as acceptable," Gaston says. In other words: it's unlikely, but possible—and only time will tell.