Abortion is a surgical or medical procedure that puts an end to a pregnancy. It is performed by a licensed physician or surgeon. Each year, nearly 1.2 million American women have an abortion to end a pregnancy.[1]. Nine out of ten abortions occur during the first 12-weeks of a pregnancy.[2]
If you are considering abortion, please consult with a medical professional and a pregnancy options counselor. The medical aftermath of abortion can include severe pain, hemorrhage (bleeding), shock or coma, and even death. Emotional reactions can include severe depression and thoughts of suicide, feelings of guilt or worthlessness, and a dependency on drugs and/or alcohol.
If you are feeling frightened, confused or overwhelmed, there are 24-hour telephone hotlines and phone numbers of contact information for crisis pregnancy in your state.
- Optionline / CareNet, 1-800-395-HELP (800-395-4357). Website: http://optionline.org/
- Birthright International, 1-800-550-4900
- National Life Center, 1-800-848-LOVE
- America's Crisis Pregnancy Helpline, 1-800-67-BABY-6
- To locate a pregnancy resource center near you: Heartbeat International
The Alan Guttmacher Institute (AGI) has published several studies examining reasons for abortions in the United States. The most recent was done in 2004. The most common reasons women consider abortion are:[3]
• Birth control (contraceptive) failure. Over half of all women who have an abortion used a contraceptive method during the month they became pregnant.
• Inability to support or care for a child.
• To end an unwanted pregnancy.
• To prevent the birth of a child with birth defects or severe medical problems. Such defects are often unknown until routine second-trimester tests are done.
• Pregnancy resulting from rape or incest.
• Physical or mental conditions that endanger the woman's health if the pregnancy is continued.
According to the AGI study, most women (92%) have an abortion is for "social" or "other" reasons. 25% said they were not ready for another child/timing is wrong; 23% said they can't afford a baby now; 19% stated they had completed their childbearing, 8% were having relationship problems/didn't want to be a single mother, 7% felt they were not mature enough to raise a child/too young to have a child, and 4% believed that a child would interfere with education or career plans.
Health problems account for 7% of the reasons (mother's health at 4% and health of the baby at 3%)
Less than 0.5% of women having abortions stated that rape was the determining factor.[4]
When does life begin? Since the mechanism by which mammals reproduce has been known for at least the last 150 years, any biologist in the world can tell you that a mammal's life begins when the sperm from the father unites with the egg from the mother. This process is called fertilization, and when the DNA from the father and mother have combined, the egg is called a fertilized egg, or zygote. When the zygote splits into two cells, it is called a two-celled embryo. When it splits into four cells, it is called a four-celled embryo, etc.
If this being is nourished and protected, it will proceed uninterrupted through the developmental stages of embryo, fetus, newborn, toddler, child, teen, adult and aged adult: one continuous existence. This being never develops into a pig, a frog or a tree, but only into a human. This being is therefore, by definition, a living human being.
Okay, it's alive - but is it a person? A human being is a person from the moment of conception. Any other idea of when personhood begins doesn't make sense. The idea that an unborn child is "dependent" on the mother and, therefore, not a human life -- or if human, has less value -- ignores the fact that even grown-ups are dependent on others for their lives and well-being. A newborn will be just as dependent on his mother, or someone, after being born as she or he was in the womb. Without care, the newborn will die. This does not make the newborn less human, rather it is indicative of what being human means, or requires; that we need to help each other in order to survive.
But what if you're not sure if it's a person? It really doesn’t matter what anybody thinks or believes about when life or personhood begins. The only logical answer to the question must be that life begins at conception, since, in the case of abortion, any other conclusion risks killing a human person. If it’s true that nobody absolutely, positively knows for certain, then the standard must be one that cannot fail to guarantee justice. You say you can’t say? Okay then, the only sensible rule has to be the broadest - the one that protects every life whenever that life may actually begin. You don’t have to be right about the question; but you do need to eliminate the possibility of being wrong.
In addition to the moral, ethical, religious, and personal debates about abortion, there are very definite legal and medical considerations:
• Parental consent is required for minors in many jurisdictions;
• Abortion may not be medically recommended for some women, even early in the pregnancy;
• Abortion and the aftermath can result in a subsequent inability to carry a pregnancy to term;
• Abortion can result in secondary infertility;
• Abortion is generally undertaken during the very beginnings of a pregnancy, while many women are still unsure if they're pregnant, undecided about their directions, or in denial about the pregnancy;
• Abortion can result in the woman's death.
Vacuum Aspiration (6 to 9 weeks): A suction tube (about 29 times more powerful than a vacuum cleaner) is inserted through the cervix and into the uterus. The fetus is torn apart by the force of the suction and sucked into a collection bottle, along with the placenta and amniotic sac. Since the doctor cannot actually see what he is doing, several possible complications can occur, including infection (if any portion of the fetus or placenta remains in the womb), uterine perforation (if the tube punctures the womb) and cervical laceration. This is the most commonly used early abortion method.
Dilation and Curettage (8 to 16 weeks): A steel loop-shaped blade is inserted into the uterus through the cervix. It is used to scrape clean the walls of the uterus, removing the fetus and placenta. As with the aspiration method described above, the doctor is working blind, and may be followed by suction aspiration. It carries an increased risk of uterine perforation, infection, and serious blood loss.
Mifepristone or RU-486 (5 to 7 weeks): This drug blocks the action of progesterone, a naturally occurring hormone which sustains the nutritive uterine lining. As this lining withers, the embryo starves to death. Administration of mifepristone is followed 36-48 hours later by misoprostol, a synthetic prostaglandin, which causes uterine contractions that expel the unborn child. Some women will deliver while still at the clinic, while others will do so later, at home or at work. Bleeding can be quite heavy and lasts for an average of nine days. This method of abortion fails 5-10% of the time, and must then be followed by a surgical abortion.
Methotrexate or "M&M" (5 to 9 weeks): Methotrexate is normally used for treatment of certain cancers, rheumatoid arthritis, and certain dermatological conditions. It is not approved for abortions by the FDA. This drug is given by injection; it interferes with the growth process of rapidly dividing cells. Like RU-486, it is followed by misoprostol (hence the "M&M" nickname) to expel the fetus. This method fails at least 4% of the time. Methotrexate can potentially cause serious side effects, including severe anemia, ulcers and bone marrow depression.
Herbal Abortifacients: Though touted as natural ways to do-it-yourself, such herbs are powerful drugs with potentially fatal consequences. Unregulated by the FDA, herbal abortifacients can vary in potency and effect. Pennyroyal, Black or Blue Cohosh and other similar herbs are toxic in excess and can easily overtax the liver and kidneys, causing headaches, extreme nausea, bleeding, or even death.
Dilation and Evacuation or "D&E" (13 to 20+ weeks): In this late term abortion the cervix is dilated, either mechanically or with laminaria. (Laminaria is a kelp species, that is dried and made into rods. The rods are inserted into the cervix, and over the course of several hours, they slowly absorb water and expand, dilating the cervix and prompting labor.) The physician uses forceps to dismember the fetus, which must then be reassembled to confirm that no parts have been left inside. Possible complications include infection, cervical laceration and uterine perforation.
Dilation and Extraction or "D&X" or "Partial Birth Abortion" (20 to 32+ weeks): This late in the pregnancy it is very difficult to dismember the fetus in the womb. Therefore the physician begins, but does not complete, a breech (feet first) delivery, taking care to leave the head inside the uterus. The physician then punctures the base of the skull and suctions out the brains. The child dies, the head collapses, and the delivery is completed.
Prostaglandin (16 to 38 weeks): This synthetic hormone is administered via injection or suppository. It causes powerful uterine contractions similar to labor. Live births are a common result. Possible risks include convulsions, vomiting, and cardiac arrest.
Digoxin Induction (20 to 32 weeks): To avoid the live birth complication described above, digoxin is first injected into the child's heart, killing it. This is followed by a prostaglandin induction.
Saline (16 to 32+ weeks): A needle is inserted through the abdomen to remove amniotic fluid. A strong salt solution is then injected, which poisons the fetus and badly burns the lungs and skin. The child is usually delivered within 24 hours. This method is rarely used any more, since it can present serious, even fatal risks to the mother.
Notes:
1 Guttmacher Institute (2008). In Brief: Facts on Induced Abortion in the United States. Available online: http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html
2 Ibid.
3 Ibid.
4 Ibid.
