Abortion Opponents Hear a ‘Heartbeat.’ Most Experts Hear Something Else.

Embedded in abortion laws in Texas are disputed assertions about embryonic development and the procedure’s risks. Chief among them: whether the early embryo has a heart.

By Roni Caryn Rabin
Feb. 14, 2022

The Texas law banning abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy is based on a singular premise disputed by many medical experts: that once an ultrasound detects electrical cardiac activity in an embryo, its heart is beating and a live birth is on the way.

At this very early stage of a pregnancy, however, the embryo is the size of a pomegranate seed and has only a primitive tube of cardiac cells that emit electric pulses and pump blood.

Continued:
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/14/health/abortion-heartbeat-debate.html

14.02.2022

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Abortion opposition related to beliefs about fetal pain perception

Media release from the University of Otago
Thursday 13 May 2021

A person’s stance on abortion is linked to their, often inaccurate, belief about when a fetus can feel pain, a University of Otago study has found.

Lead author Emma Harcourt, PhD candidate in Otago’s Centre for Science Communication, says misinformation about abortion and pregnancy is common and potentially harmful.

Continued: https://www.nzdoctor.co.nz/article/abortion-opposition-related-beliefs-about-fetal-pain-perception

13.05.2021

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On Abortion in the Context of Malta: a Medical Doctor’s Perspective

On Abortion in the Context of Malta: a Medical Doctor’s Perspective

April 3, 2019
Gilbert Gravino
Illustrations by the author

It is extremely important to differentiate between being anti-abortion at an individual level and being anti-legalising-abortion (anti-choice), a distinction that is often overlooked. It is perfectly reasonable and respectable for individuals who would never have an abortion themselves to be pro-choice.

At the heart of every debate on abortion are its scientific, moral, social, psychological and medical aspects. They all play a crucial role in formulating an opinion and taking a stance on the issue.

Continued: https://www.islesoftheleft.org/on-abortion-in-the-context-of-malta-a-medical-doctors-perspective/

The moment a baby’s brain starts to function, and other scientific answers on abortion

The moment a baby’s brain starts to function, and other scientific answers on abortion

May 24, 2018
Tomás Ryan

There are not two views on abortion in Ireland. There are 4,803,748 different perspectives. In the weeks leading up to polling day, the Irish people have started from the ground up and the debate is now firmly in the parameters of “under what circumstances should abortion be available?”

Scientists are generally a stroppy sort of people. We are trained to question absolutely everything, and we have a deep scepticism of authority or unjustified assertion. We make individual conclusions based on an objective assessment of the evidence and – beyond the core accepted scientific facts – we disagree with each other constantly.

Continued: https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/abortion-referendum/the-moment-a-baby-s-brain-starts-to-function-and-other-scientific-answers-on-abortion-1.3506968

24.05.2018