Proponents of hormonal contraception — particularly the pill — contend that contraception does not cause abortion. They argue that contraception prevents pregnancy and thereby reduces the need for induced abortion. However, they intentionally define the term “pregnancy” as implantation of a fertilized egg in the lining of a woman’s uterus, as opposed to “pregnancy” beginning at fertilization.
Whether one understands pregnancy as beginning at “implantation” or “fertilization,” the heart of the matter is when human life begins. Embryological science has clearly determined that, when we consider natural sexual human reproduction, human life begins at the beginning of the process of fertilization — at the moment of first contact between the female oocyte and the male sperm immediately resulting in a new, genetically distinct human being. This is not a subjective opinion, but an objective scientific fact.[1]
Keep in mind that fertilization normally occurs in the fallopian tube. The newly created child then travels down the fallopian tube to the uterus (womb) where he or she implants. Implantation is necessary for the new child to receive nourishment from the mother and continue developing. The journey from the fallopian tube to the womb takes between five and seven days during which pregnancy cannot be readily detected.
Hormonal birth control has three modes of action; that is, it can work in one of three ways:
- Prevent or delay the release of an ooctye (egg) from the ovary (ovulation). However, women can and do experience “breakthrough ovulation” — meaning that an oocyte is released from the ovary, thus making fertilization possible.
- Cause the cervical mucus to thicken, making it difficult for the sperm to reach the oocyte. It is possible, though, for the sperm to break through the mucus and for fertilization to occur.
- Thin the lining of the uterus (endometrium) so as to inhibit implantation.
The package inserts for all forms of hormonal contraception clearly indicate that each can work to prevent a “fertilized egg” (which is actually a newly formed human being) from implanting in the uterine wall.
Therefore, if a woman ingests hormonal contraception after fertilization has taken place, the third mode of action can occur. The lining of the uterus can be altered causing the woman’s body to reject the living human embryo, making implantation impossible and the child will die. This result is called a chemical abortion; therefore hormonal contraception has an abortifacient nature.
The lower the dosage of the pill (i.e. mini pills), the more likely it is to work by causing a chemical abortion.
The common descriptions given for chemical birth control fail to accurately describe their possible abortifacient actions and are misleading the public. The confusion is aggravated by attempts to re-define pregnancy as occurring after implantation. Potential users of chemical birth control are not told that these drugs may abort an established pregnancy. This is not informed consent.
With the introduction of chemical birth control, abortion statistics have not gone down — they’ve gone up — way up!
“Family planning” experts have always recognized that the high failure rate of contraceptives would lead to more abortions. In fact, they demand that abortion be made available as a “backup” to widespread contraception.
Abortion statistician Christopher Tietze stated baldly that women who use contraception are inevitably going to have several “failures” during their reproductive lives: “The safest regimen of control for the unmarried and for married child-spacers is the use of traditional methods [of contraception] backed up by abortion; but if this regimen is commenced early in the child-bearing years, it is likely to involve several abortions in the course of her reproductive career for each woman who chooses it.”
What birth control has done for our society is turn little babies into disposable objects. Pregnancy is no longer seen as a blessing, but as a curse or a disease. Parents of large families are looked down upon instead of being held in high esteem. We now place more value on getting big salaries, driving nice cars and living in huge homes.
Young married couples want to wait years before starting families because they have been told by our society that children will take away from their freedom. So, if a child is conceived at the “wrong time” or is unplanned, abortion becomes a likely option for the couple who cannot see that children are a great blessing.
[1] “The Carnegie Stages of Early Human Embryonic Development: Chart of all 23 Stages, Detailed Descriptions of Stages 1 – 6” http://www.lifeissues.net/writers/irv/irv_123carnegiestages1.html
Also see:
ALL’s “The Pill Kills” website at www.thepillkills.com
From Contraception to abortion: A timeline
http://www.all.org/db_file/1047.pdf
Contraception and Abortion: The Deadly Connection
http://www.all.org/db_file/1017.pdf