It’s hard to imagine how ending the life of your unborn child, from the privacy of your own home, could be perceived as a positive thing.  But pro-abortion groups definitely do and they were very unhappy, last month, when the 5th Circuit stepped in and ruled against the FDA for having relaxed requirements for the use of abortion drugs.

In today’s article, Cristina Cevallos explains what these drugs are and how they work.  Her article was a good tutorial for me.  It’s important we all know, and can speak out about their dangers.  Women’s lives, not to mention the lives of unborn children, could hang in the balance.

 

May the pro-life gains continue,

Wendy Wixom, President

United Families International

 

 When Drugs Kill rather than Cure”

by Cristina Cevallos

In August, pro-life groups around the U.S. applauded the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling which found that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) must restore critical safeguards for the use of abortion drugs.  Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), which represented the plaintiffs in the case, called the decision a “victory for women’s health.”  But what are these abortion drugs and why are they so problematic?

Emergency contraception, Mifepristone and Misoprostol

Women can take different drugs to end the life of a baby in the womb depending on how much time has passed since the sexual act. One can choose emergency contraception (Plan B or Morning after pill) for the immediate following hours. This drug has three effects: 1) it thickens the cervical mucus so that sperm does not reach the cervix, 2) it stops the ovum from leaving the ovary and 3) it interrupts the implantation of the fertilized ovum. In the latter case, this pill becomes abortive since it causes the death of the embryo as it cannot nest in the uterus.

As the Institute of Bioethics of the Graduate School of Health Sciences of the Catholic University points out: “If the woman has not yet ovulated at the moment of ingesting the drug, it could stop the maturation process of the ovum and there will be no fertilization. If the woman is ovulating or very close to ovulation and fertilization does occur, the drug acts on the endometrium, preventing it from developing and allowing the embryo to implant, thus producing an early abortion”.

With the passage of more time, one can choose to have a chemical abortion, that refers to two drugs: Mifepristone (RU 486, Mifegyn, Mifeprex) and Misoprostol (Cytotec, Arthrotec, Oxaprost, Cyprostol, Mibetec, Prostokos or Misotrol). The first inhibits a hormone called progesterone cutting off blood and nourishment to the baby starving him to death. The second causes contractions to detach the gestational sac. It also ruptures vessels and forms a blood clot that expels all or part of the baby’s body.

As it requires taking two different drugs, the mother can still stop the abortion and save the baby’s life before taking the second dose. The abortion pill reversal (APR) process involves being prescribed a large dose of progesterone within 24 hours after taking the first pill. The American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists has stated that the procedure is safe since this hormone has been safely used in pregnancy for more than 50 years and that there is no evidence of birth defects on babies who survive mifepristone.

In some countries,  abortion drugs are considered illegal or only authorized for certain circumstances (e.g. rape) as it facilitates illegal abortions and smooths the path for rapists and sex traffickers, who take advantage of the ease of obtaining the pills and the stealthiness of the procedure. In others, it can be purchased directly from pharmacies or with medical authorization.

Fortunately, it seems that awareness is growing about the need to limit its use.  In fact, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit recently ruled that some decisions the FDA made to relax abortion pill (Mifepristone and Misoprostol combined) requirements were illegal. The judges stated that it did not adequately consider the drug’s safety when used by minors and even banned the pill to be prescribed by telemedicine and sent by mail. They also limited its use from ten up to seven weeks, although the ruling will not take effect until the Supreme Court reviews it.

DIY abortion

Taking the “Mifepristone – Misoprostol combo” is the most practiced form of “clandestine” abortion. The Guttmacher Institute’s periodic census showed that in 2020, it accounted for 53% of US abortions. Most feminist groups and even the WHO itself promote taking these drugs and provide guidelines that one can follow “from the comfort of your own home.” In reality, they are encouraging pregnant women to deliver dead children through a medical procedure, without supervision.

From 2000 to 2022 the FDA shared that there were 28 reports of deaths in patients associated with mifepristone and over 4,000 reports of adverse events from women experiencing hemorrhage, excruciating abdominal pain, and severe life-threatening infections. It should be of concern that no tests are performed before administering a drug designed to cause bleeding and provokes areas of ischemia (without oxygen), which favor the development of a highly infectious bacteria like clostridium sordelli.

This is precisely what might have caused Maria del Valle’s death on April 11th 2021. The 23 year old Argentinian, president of a political group that promoted the legalization of abortion in her country, was convalescent for six days due to complications after taking abortion pills. Her boyfriend took her to the hospital but nothing could be done to save her. Both had been following instructions from a doctor via Whatsapp and hiding the situation from their families.

An unconscionable procedure

Unlike a surgical abortion where pieces of the baby are whisked away by medical staff, here, women tend to flush their children’s body parts through the toilet. Although many women who take the abortion pill think that they are only eliminating “tissue,” the reality is that they are inducing the birth of a child they have just killed. Former Planned Parenthood director Sue Thayer even said: “Women would put them in a Ziploc bag and come back to the center, and say, ‘You told me it was a heavy period. You told me it was just tissue, and here’s my baby.’”

The same moral illicitness subsists for those involved in the dissemination and prescription of these medications. There are many involved in their promotion.  In fact the pill finds its origins in eugenics-based organizations, has links to the manufacturer of the deadly gas Zyklon-B, used by the Nazis during the Holocaust and is been pushed in many countries by foundations such as Rockefeller, Gates, Buffett, Packard, Ford, Hewlett, MacArthur, and Kellogg.

Medications were supposed to be prescribed to cure, not to kill. Abortion pills already make it easy to kill a defenseless human being. Further facilitating access to these drugs is endangering even those who take them. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit got it right when they called out the FDA for smoothing the way for abortion pills.  We must smooth the way for life, not be in the business of authorizing drugs that facilitate death.

 

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Cristina Cevallos is a Peruvian Law professional. She is passionate about issues related to cultural heritage and the defense of traditional values, especially the sanctity of life and religious freedom. She has been part of different volunteer and entrepreneurship programs internationally and loves doing projects with children, going to the beach, and learning about art history. Her goal is to travel the world helping people to find true happiness.