Fighting the Lies of the Culture of Death

Planned Barrenhood and Contraception

Planned Parenthood’s site “teenwire.com” has the following to say about contraception:

Your Question:
Dear Experts,
Is it true that birth control pills cause an abortion?
Sascha, 01.12.06

The Answer:
Dear Sascha,
No, this is not true. Abortion ends a pregnancy. Birth control pills, as well as the ring, the patch, the shot, and emergency contraception pills, prevent pregnancy before it happens. They work by preventing ovulation — the release of an egg — and/or the fertilization of an egg.Hope this information helps!
Take care,
teenwire.com® Editors
END QUOTE FROM WEBSITE


BUT IS THIS ANSWER CORRECT? Is prevention of ovulation the ONLY way that contraception works?

The following links prove conclusively that the pill does indeed work in two primary ways (and there are many more links that could be added):
1) by preventing fertilization and, if that fails, by
2) PREVENTING IMPLANTATION OF A FERTILIZED EGG.

http://www.pilltruth.com/company.html

http://www.womenshealthnetwork.org/publications/fact_details.php?fid=12

(Quote from the above, pro-contraception site):

“There are three possible ways EC (emergency contraception) might work:
by delaying or inhibiting ovulation, by altering sperm or egg transport in the fallopian tubes, and/or by altering the uterine lining to inhibit a fertilized egg from implanting. Current research indicates that in most cases it inhibits ovulation, which means that fertilization doesn’t take place. If a woman takes EC after ovulation, it may still prevent pregnancy through the other mechanisms. All three mechanisms take effect before a fertilized egg implants in the uterus.”

The second website supports contraception and emergency contraception. While the article is specifically about emergency contraception, the mechanism is exactly the same as those used in regular contraception. Proof? Again, from the pro-contraception link above:

"What Is EC?
In the United States, there is one brand of EC pill available: Plan B, a progestin-only pill. In other countries there are also EC options that contain combined estrogen-progestin pills. Both are regular birth control pills packaged in a different dose and with different use instructions "

Now, notice how those who favor abortion and contraception try to frame the argument. They try to change the definition of when human life begins from conception to “implantation” in the uterus. Is this valid? Exactly what IS a fertilized human egg? A very young human being, as you will see below according to modern scientific literature. The human life=implantation argument is dishonest and inaccurate.

Planned Parenthood is, once again, not telling the truth.

When does human life begin?

1) "Fertilization is a sequence of events that begins with the contact of a sperm (spermatozoon) with a secondary oocyte (ovum) and ends with the fusion of their pronuclei ... and the mingling of their chromosomes to form a new cell. This fertilized ovum, known as a zygote, is a large diploid cell that is the beginning ... of a human being." (Moore, Keith L., Essentials of Human Embryology. Toronto: B.C. Decker, Inc., 1988, p.2.)

2) "Although human life is a continuous process, fertilization is a critical landmark because, under ordinary circumstances, a new, genetically distinct human organism is thereby formed. ... The combination of 23 chromosomes present in each pronucleus results in 46 chromosomes in the zygote. Thus the diploid number is restored and the embryonic genome is formed. The embryo now exists as a genetic unity." (O'Rahilly, Ronan and Müller, Fabiola. Human Embryology and Teratology, 2nd edition. New York: Wiley-Liss, 1996, pp. 8, 29).

3) "Almost all higher animals start their lives from a single cell, the fertilized ovum (zygote). ... The time of fertilization represents the starting point in the life history, or ontogeny, of the individual." (Carlson, Bruce M., Patten's Foundations of Embryology, 6th edition. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1996, p.3.)

4) "Embryo: An organism in the earliest stage of development; in a man, from the time of conception to the end of the second month in the uterus." (Dox, Ida G. et al. The Harper Collins Illustrated Medical Dictionary. New York: Harper Perennial, 1993, p. 146.)
*"The fertilized egg, now properly called an embryo, must make its way to the uterus." (Carlson, Bruce M., Human Embryology and Developmental Biology. St. Louis: Mosby, 1994, p.3).

5) “From the moment a baby is conceived, it bears the indelible stamp of a separate distinct personality, an individual different from all other individuals.” Ultrasound pioneer, Sir William Liley, MD 1967

6)“After fertilization has taken place, a new human being has come into existence. This is no longer a matter of taste of opinion. Each individual has a very neat beginning, at conception.” Dr. Jerome Lejeune, genetics professor at the University of Descartes, Paris. Discoverer of the Down’s Syndrome chromosome

7)“It is scientifically correct to say that an individual human life begins at conception.” Professor M. Matthew-Roth, Harvard University Medical School

8)By all the criteria of modern molecular biology, life is present from the moment of conception.” Professor Hymie Gordon, Mayo Clinic

A good Traditionalist Catholic need not be afraid that science is his enemy. Real, honest science is very Traditional, indeed.

Late Addition: Planned Barrenhood lying again, claiming contraception lowers the abortion rates, USCCB takes them to task: http://www.usccb.org/comm/archives/2006/06-041.shtml