Pregnancy
and Conception Frequently Asked
Questions (FAQ)
1. Is Implantation the
medically accepted start of pregnancy?
2. If a new life can be
formed in a Petri dish, and a Petri dish
cannot be pregnant, then can't it be
said that a woman isn't pregnant at
fertilization?
3. Does an embryo have to
be in the womb for a woman to be
pregnant?
4. If pregnancy can only be
detected as early as implantation, does
this mean that pregnancy starts at
implantation?
5. The literature I've read
said Plan B isn't an abortion pill, so
how can you claim it is an
abortifacient?
6. Isn't pregnancy a
medical condition, and therefore, not
subject to the common understanding of
pregnancy?
7. Doesn't conception mean
implantation?
8. How can you say
pregnancy begins at implantation since
50% of fertilized eggs fail to implant?
9. Does preventing
implantation meet the medical definition
of abortion?
10. Does In Vitro
Fertilization IVF cause abortions?
1. Is Implantation
the medically accepted start of
pregnancy?
No, but that's what others would like
for you to believe. The
medically
accepted start of pregnancy is at
fertilization or just after but
prior to implantation (which happens a
few days later)
Most of the leading
medical dictionaries list fertilization
as the beginning of pregnancy (or
immediately after fertilization, but
prior to implantation).
Those who are involved in abortion, in
vitro fertilization IVF, or
embryonic/stem cell research favor the
definitions with soften the implications
of the work they do. Most other
medical professionals however, tend to
hold the position that pregnancy begins
at fertilization. (This wasn't
even a subject of debate until 1965,
when the
ACOG changed their definition
of conception)
To view the historical and current
definitions (including those from major
medial dictionaries), click
here.
2. If a new life
can be formed in a Petri dish, and a
Petri dish cannot be pregnant, then
can't it be said that a woman isn't
pregnant at fertilization?
No.
Petri dishes, while capable of
holding newly created life, are not
capable of reproducing themselves, nor
do they carry their own offspring.
A Petri dish holding a tiny human is
no more pregnant than an incubator
holding a premature baby is. Machines,
glass, plastic are objects and not
beings. The word "pregnancy", in the
biological and medical sense, is
restricted to living beings.
A pregnancy which originates from
fertilization in a Petri dish (IVF)
skips the normal fertilization "phase".
This does not mean that implantation
marks the start of all pregnancies, it
only means that this particular method
of achieving pregnancy skips
fertilization inside of a woman. It's
the exception to the rule, not the rule
itself.
3. Does an embryo
have to be in the womb for a woman to be
pregnant?
No. Ectopic pregnancies, which
basically mean a pregnancy which has
implanted in the wrong place, exist
outside of the womb. Even though
the location of the offspring is outside
of the womb, it is still considered a
pregnancy. This only goes to
illustrate that pregnancy need not occur
in the womb.
4. If pregnancy
can only be detected as early as
implantation, does this mean that
pregnancy starts at implantation?
Let's apply this claim to cancer. No
credible physician will tell a cancer
patient that they did not have cancer
prior to a positive diagnosis. Instead,
they say things like "we caught it
early" or "we caught it too late". But
they would never say "you never had
cancer until we could diagnose it." Yet,
when it comes to the state of pregnancy,
this is exactly what some OB/GYNs and
medical organizations are promoting. In
their twisted view, pregnancy only
starts at the earliest possible moment
of diagnosis -- implantation.
A diagnosis of pregnancy at
implantation is simply that – the
discovery of an existing but previously
un-diagnosable condition. A positive
diagnosis isn't the beginning of a
condition, nor does it cause a
condition, it’s merely the confirmation
or discovery of it. After all, pregnancy
tests do not cause pregnancy and cancer
tests do not cause cancer -- they only
confirm the presence or absence of these
conditions.
The earliest point at which pregnancy
can be reliably detected does not define
when pregnancy begins, it only indicates
the earliest point this pre-existing
condition can be detected.
5. The
literature I've read said Plan B isn't
an abortion pill, so how can you claim
it is an abortifacient?
Barr Pharmaceuticals, the makers of Plan
B, admit that it can prevent
implantation of a fertilized egg (which
is a newly created and unique human
being.)
The literature, including Barr's own, often says two things:
1. Plan B isn't "the" abortion
pill RU-486. This is a true
statement but one use to obfuscate the
way Plan B can work -- it has nothing to
do with the issue at hand other than to
try and confuse people into thinking
that Plan B pill doesn't cause
abortions.
2. It claims that Plan B cannot
interfere with an established/existing
pregnancy. That untrue, since it
can prevent implantation. They can only
get away with this by using a non-scientific definition of
pregnancy -- beginning with
implantation. The fact is,
pregnancy begins with fertilization
and
the prevention of implantation is an
abortion. Plan B is thought to be
capable of preventing implantation.
6. Isn't pregnancy
a medical condition, and therefore, not
subject to the common understanding of
pregnancy?
No. Pregnancy is the natural state of
carrying young inside a woman.
This isn't a disease or syndrome, but a
natural state of being. It takes
place in a biological being and also
takes up space within such a being.
In a nutshell, when a new human takes up
space within a woman, she is pregnant --
carrying her [or another's] young
insider her body. Medical
definitions which stray from this
understanding stray from science and the
long standing medically accepted
definition of pregnancy -- and common
sense.
7. Doesn't
conception mean implantation?
No. Though it is often misused to
mean implantation, the historical and
current medical definition of conception
is fertilization. Most major
medical dictionaries list fertilization
as the definition of conception.
8. How can you say
pregnancy begins at implantation since
50% of fertilized eggs fail to implant?
Miscarriages (unintentional abortion) do
not define when pregnancy begins -- they
only define when one ends.
Miscarriages happen during all phases of
pregnancy, and should not be used as a
basis for defining when pregnancy
begins.
9. Does preventing
implantation meet the medical definition
of abortion?
Yes. Preventing implantation meets
the definition of abortion:
a·bor·tion (-bôrshn) n.
1. The expulsion of an embryo or
fetus before it is viable.
2. A miscarriage.
3. An aborted organism.
4. Cessation of normal growth,
especially of an organ or other body
part, before full development or
maturation.
5. The arrest of an action or
process before its completion.
Source: The American Heritage®
Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton
Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton
Mifflin Company.
10. Does In Vitro
Fertilization IVF cause abortions
Yes, embryos which fail to implant or
which die outside of a woman are
aborted. Consider the definition
of abortion:
a·bor·tion (-bôrshn) n.
1. The expulsion of an embryo or
fetus before it is viable.
2. A miscarriage.
3. An aborted organism.
4. Cessation of normal growth,
especially of an organ or other body
part, before full development or
maturation.
5. The arrest of an action or
process before its completion.
Source: The American Heritage®
Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton
Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton
Mifflin Company.
