Birth control pills and abortion
Oral and emergency contraceptives alter the lining of the uterus to prevent attachment of the embryo.
Re-defining life to begin at implantation was a change that came about, in part, to accomodate those involved with IVF. No-one wanted to acknowledge that a child had begun his or her life in a petrie dish. This change smoothed the way for BCPs to be classed as contraceptives.
Major embryology texts, such as Moore and Persaud's The Developing Human (6th ed., 1998), say that a pregnancy - and therefore a new human life - begins at the precise moment of unification of sperm and ovum. This is a statement of embryological fact. This position is supported by evidence given in a Human Rights trial in Canada in 1983
Nine expert witnesses were called to provide scientific and professional evidence on foetology, genetics, obstetrics, neurology and ultrasound technology.
The scientific evidence presented at the trial was uncontested, and demonstrated beyond doubt that the preborn child is a human being whose life begins at fertilisation (conception). In the light of this scientific evidence most abortion advocates now openly acknowledge that life begins at conception and have changed the issue from "when life begins" to "when personhood begins."
In 1985, the American Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists re-defined pregnancy as beginning at implantation, rather than fertilisation. Prior to this change, all scientists and physicians considered fertilisation as the beginning of human life -- and many still do.
Note: Some medical organisations and legislative bodies have come to accept the new philosophical definition. Some Obstetrics textbooks have been rewritten to regard conception as synonymous with implantation.
