Monday, June 3, 2019
Monday, February 4, 2019
Did N.Y. just put pregnant women at greater risk? The Reproductive Health Act is a dangerous step back
Did N.Y. just put pregnant women at greater risk?
The Reproductive Health Act is a dangerous step back ...
https://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/ny-oped-ny-just-put-pregnant-women-at-greater-risk-20190128-story.html
Gov.
Andrew M. Cuomo, Cuomo, right, signs Reproductive Health Act
Legislation during a ceremony, Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2019. (Darren McGee /
AP)
Despite
current trends of abortion being more restricted and dramatically
declining in the country at large, New York state has doubled down on
the procedure by finally passing the Reproductive Health Act (RHA). This
Gov. Cuomo-led abortion expansion takes place in a state which already
had the highest abortion rate in the county. New York City, remarkably,
ends one out three prenatal human lives via abortion.
Much
has been made of the new law’s controversial expansion of late-term
abortion access — controversial because, as Secular Pro-Life has shown,
abortions in the second and third trimester, though rare, are most often
elective and generally not medically necessary.
Less
attention, however, has been given to fact that the RHA takes concern
for the prenatal child completely out of the criminal code.
It
has always been difficult for abortion activists to explain how they
can consider a fetus a mere object to be killed and discarded in an
abortion context — while in other legal contexts she can be considered a
human being who is killed via homicide. Indeed, many U.S. states have explicit laws against fetal homicide.
New
York no longer has this contradiction in its own law, but the RHA has
removed it at the cost of common sense. Intellectually honest people
know that when a pregnant woman is killed, something different has
happened than when a woman who is not pregnant is killed. Both
situations are incredibly tragic, but in the former situation, two human
beings are killed, not one.
According
to CNN.com, California faced a similar lack of common sense back in
1969. An eight-months pregnant Teresa Keeler saw her ex-husband block
her car on a narrow mountain road and ask if she was pregnant by a new
partner. When she refused to answer, he forcibly took her out of her car
and literally stomped the baby to death. Prosecutors charged him with
the murder of her baby girl, but the state Supreme Court threw out the
charge, claiming that she was not a human being and only someone born
alive could be killed.
The
public simply wouldn’t have it. Common sense told them what this man
had done and they forced the state legislature to change California law
to reflect this common sense. This change would pave the way for a 2003
case in which Scott Peterson killed his pregnant wife Laci.
He was charged with double homicide, a charge which made him eligible for the death penalty. As a pro-lifer, I do not support capital punishment for him or anyone else, but Peterson is on death row today only because California had the common sense to call his act what it was: the killing of two human beings.
He was charged with double homicide, a charge which made him eligible for the death penalty. As a pro-lifer, I do not support capital punishment for him or anyone else, but Peterson is on death row today only because California had the common sense to call his act what it was: the killing of two human beings.
The
disturbing relationship between pregnancy and violence is persistent,
and one of many reasons both pro-life feminists and reproductive justice
activists believe it is often a mistake to speak as if women are
genuinely “choosing” abortion at all. Indeed, there is a strong correlation between women who seek abortions and those who are facing violence from an intimate partner.
Even more disturbingly, a study in the Journal of Midwifery & Women’s Health
found that 43% of deaths of pregnant women over eight years in
Washington, D.C. were homicides. As reported in Women’s Health magazine,
pregnant women are more likely to suffer violent trauma — and are twice
as likely to die after trauma — than are women who are not pregnant.
And these terrible numbers may even be higher given irregular reporting
requirements and the fact that 77% of maternal deaths take place before
20 weeks gestation, a time when a fetal death certificate is not
required.
Overall, homicide is now the second-leading cause of injury-related death for pregnant women in the United States. Punishing assailants in such cases for attacking two human beings is the least we can do to protect these vulnerable women.
But
when confronted with a choice between refusing to punish illegal
abortion in the criminal code and giving women this added protection
from violence, the governor of New York chose to the former. Given his
history on these issues, this should not be surprising. Back in 2013,
Cuomo let the Women’s Equality Act fail because pro-lifers in the state
Senate would not support its abortion expansion — though they were happy
to pass the other parts of the legislation.
The
governor revealed much about his motives and priorities when he let
wonderful things like pay equity and reduced pregnancy discrimination
fail because he didn’t get expansion of late-term abortion. Indeed,
during the last several years he has had something close to an obsession
with expanding abortion — even telling those who disagree with him on
the issue that they are not welcome in New York.
Men
often get criticized for being publicly skeptical of abortion rights —
the implication being that they ought to stay out of the debate and
leave it to women. Interestingly, however, men like Cuomo get almost no
criticism for being publicly in favor of abortion rights — even when significantly more women than men support legal restrictions on late-term abortion.
A
powerful man (aided by some women and facing the opposition of others)
has finally pushed through his preferred views on what abortion law
should be in New York. Like Roe v. Wade before it, the RHA actually
serves the interests of men, not women.
Tragically, New York women are less safe from violence now than they were before the passage of the Reproductive Health Act.
Tragically, New York women are less safe from violence now than they were before the passage of the Reproductive Health Act.
Monday, August 13, 2018
6 Surprising Facts About the Female Egg Everyone Should Know
6 Surprising Facts About the Female Egg Everyone Should Know
https://natural-fertility-info.com/facts-about-the-female-egg.html
We always hear about how interesting men’s sperm are – how quick, agile and strong they are, able to traverse the long journey to the egg, but how much do we know about the other genetic half of a child – the female egg?
In writing this article, I came across some really interesting information about human eggs that I think we should all know! Read on to learn some of the most fascinating facts about human eggs, and the intricate processes of ovulation and conception.
But recent research has been turning this theory on its head. Scientists have discovered a new type of stem-cell in the human ovary that may point to the possibility of new eggs continually being formed throughout a woman’s reproductive years. Since men are constantly making new sperm (about 1,500 every second!), it shouldn’t be such a stretch to consider that women may be producing new eggs throughout their lives as well. Further research will be able to confirm this new theory, and continue expanding our view of women’s fertility.
Though the egg has a lifespan of less than a day, sperm can stay alive inside a woman’s uterus and fallopian tubes anywhere from 1 to 5 days. This means that sex up to 5 days prior to ovulation can actually result in pregnancy! The lifespan of the sperm is dependent on the sperm’s health, but also on the woman’s cervical fluid, which can nourish the sperm during its wait.
The egg appears to give preference to sperm with intact DNA, producing a compound that softens the outer layer of the egg to allow specific sperm to enter. These studies also suggest that the egg may even actively bind sperm to its surface, thereby not giving the sperm any choice in the matter, trapping the sperm it has chosen. Once a sperm has made its way in, the outer layer of the egg hardens, which prevents entry to any other suitors.
It is important to note that whenever double ovulation occurs, it happens as part of a single ovulatory event – the eggs will be released within a 24 hour period. Once ovulation occurs, there is a big hormonal shift that takes place, progesterone production is revved up, and the release of any future eggs is halted. Therefore, it is not possible for a woman to ovulate on Monday, and ovulate again on Saturday.
About the Author:
Kathryn Cardinal is an herbalist and Fertility Awareness teacher. She is passionate about working with women to help them reconnect to their sacred womb wisdom and achieve radiant health naturally. Kathryn’s work focuses on holistic hormonal health, natural contraception, and conscious conception. More information can be found on her website, www.springmoonfertility.com
References
https://natural-fertility-info.com/facts-about-the-female-egg.html
We always hear about how interesting men’s sperm are – how quick, agile and strong they are, able to traverse the long journey to the egg, but how much do we know about the other genetic half of a child – the female egg?
In writing this article, I came across some really interesting information about human eggs that I think we should all know! Read on to learn some of the most fascinating facts about human eggs, and the intricate processes of ovulation and conception.
1. Women May Be Making New Eggs Throughout Their Lives
For a long time, biology books have stated that a woman is born with a finite number of eggs – that the production of a woman’s eggs happens entirely in-utero, and ceases before birth. It is usually reported that a woman has 7 million immature eggs when she is in her mother’s womb, and that this number drops to 700,000 by the time she reaches puberty.But recent research has been turning this theory on its head. Scientists have discovered a new type of stem-cell in the human ovary that may point to the possibility of new eggs continually being formed throughout a woman’s reproductive years. Since men are constantly making new sperm (about 1,500 every second!), it shouldn’t be such a stretch to consider that women may be producing new eggs throughout their lives as well. Further research will be able to confirm this new theory, and continue expanding our view of women’s fertility.
2. A Human Egg is Remarkably Big
You might be surprised to find out that the human egg is one of the biggest cells in a woman’s body. It is about the size of a grain of sand and can actually be seen with the naked eye. To put this into perspective, an egg is about 4 times bigger than a skin cell, 26 times bigger than a red blood cell, and 16 times bigger than a sperm!3. An Egg Takes a Long Time to Mature
Most eggs are present within the ovary in an immature state from the time of a woman’s menarche. Some eggs will lie dormant for years or even decades before they begin to mature, while others will degenerate and never develop. For eggs to complete their journey to ovulation, they receive a signal to begin their final maturation process about 150 days before they would be released from the ovary. At the beginning of any given cycle, there are generally about 12 eggs that have started to grow, and as ovulation nears, preference is given to one of those eggs, as it receives the final push to maturity and is then released from the ovary.4. The Egg Has a Short Life After Ovulation
Once the egg has matured and is released from the ovary during ovulation, it goes into the fallopian tube where it lives for 12 to 24 hours. Conception is possible if sperm is already present in the fallopian tubes when the egg is released, or if a woman has sex while the egg is alive, causing sperm to swim up through the uterus and into the fallopian tube. Sperm can reach the egg in as little as 30 minutes. If conception is successful, the newly fertilized egg will travel out of the fallopian tube and implant into the uterus 6 to 10 days later. If the egg is not fertilized, it will simply dissolve and pass out with the menstrual flow.Though the egg has a lifespan of less than a day, sperm can stay alive inside a woman’s uterus and fallopian tubes anywhere from 1 to 5 days. This means that sex up to 5 days prior to ovulation can actually result in pregnancy! The lifespan of the sperm is dependent on the sperm’s health, but also on the woman’s cervical fluid, which can nourish the sperm during its wait.
5. The Egg is Quite Picky
When discussing fertilization, the egg is often portrayed as a passive player in the drama of conception, waiting patiently for the first sperm to arrive and burst in. But research has shown that the egg has a much bigger role than previously thought, and that she is in fact quite picky! Although we usually think of the sperm doing all the hard work of fertilization, penetrating the docile egg, it is now believed that the egg actually chooses who she lets in or not.The egg appears to give preference to sperm with intact DNA, producing a compound that softens the outer layer of the egg to allow specific sperm to enter. These studies also suggest that the egg may even actively bind sperm to its surface, thereby not giving the sperm any choice in the matter, trapping the sperm it has chosen. Once a sperm has made its way in, the outer layer of the egg hardens, which prevents entry to any other suitors.
6. Multiple Ovulation is More Common Than You Think
Multiple ovulation is the release of two or more mature eggs during a cycle. This is said to occur in up to 10% of all cycles, which means that the average woman releases two (or more) eggs at least once a year! When 2 eggs are released and both are fertilized, this produces fraternal twins. Identical twins are produced when a single embryo splits into two.It is important to note that whenever double ovulation occurs, it happens as part of a single ovulatory event – the eggs will be released within a 24 hour period. Once ovulation occurs, there is a big hormonal shift that takes place, progesterone production is revved up, and the release of any future eggs is halted. Therefore, it is not possible for a woman to ovulate on Monday, and ovulate again on Saturday.
About the Author:Kathryn Cardinal is an herbalist and Fertility Awareness teacher. She is passionate about working with women to help them reconnect to their sacred womb wisdom and achieve radiant health naturally. Kathryn’s work focuses on holistic hormonal health, natural contraception, and conscious conception. More information can be found on her website, www.springmoonfertility.com
References - White, Y., A.R. et al., (2012) Oocyte formation by mitotically active germ cells purified from ovaries of reproductive-age women. Nature Medicine 18, pp. 413-421. doi:10.1038/nm.2669
- Freedman, D.H. (1992) New Theory on How The Aggressive Egg Attracts Sperm. Discover Magazine. Retrieved from: http://discovermagazine.com/1992/jun/theaggressiveegg55
- Weschler, T. (2006) Taking Charge of your Fertility, 10th anniversary edition. Collins. New York, NY.
- Singer, K. (2004) The Garden of Fertility. Avery. New York, NY.
- Cell Size and Scale. Retrieved from: http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/cells/scale/
Thursday, August 10, 2017
8 Tools for Coping with Miscarriage
8 Tools for Coping with Miscarriage
http://www.womendeservebetter.com/8-tools-for-coping-with-miscarriage
Emotions You May Feel:
It’s normal to feel an array of emotions after a pregnancy loss. These emotions can range from but are not limited to: sadness, numbness, shock, depression, anger, disbelief, a sense of failure, and vulnerability.
The first thing to remember during this time is that it’s OK to feel these emotions.
Second, the loss of pregnancy isn’t your fault; complications can happen to any woman.
Some women experience physical symptoms while dealing with their emotional distress. You might experience fatigue, trouble sleeping, difficulty concentrating, and loss of appetite. There are hormonal changes that occur after a miscarriage, and this can intensify these emotions.
Some Things You Can Do:
http://www.womendeservebetter.com/8-tools-for-coping-with-miscarriage
Emotions You May Feel:
It’s normal to feel an array of emotions after a pregnancy loss. These emotions can range from but are not limited to: sadness, numbness, shock, depression, anger, disbelief, a sense of failure, and vulnerability.
The first thing to remember during this time is that it’s OK to feel these emotions.
Second, the loss of pregnancy isn’t your fault; complications can happen to any woman.
Some women experience physical symptoms while dealing with their emotional distress. You might experience fatigue, trouble sleeping, difficulty concentrating, and loss of appetite. There are hormonal changes that occur after a miscarriage, and this can intensify these emotions.
Some Things You Can Do:
- Grief and loss are different for everyone, and the time it will take to heal will vary depending on the person. Give yourself time to heal.
- You may need a chance to process what happened and how you feel. Taking time off of work can be a good way to give yourself time to understand your loss.
- Sharing your stories with others can actually help you heal with your loss. It may feel painful to talk about, but people can help you not feel alone in this situation. Not everyone will have the right response to your news because he or she hasn’t been through it, but it’s about not keeping the pain to yourself regardless of how someone responds to the news.
- Try to not close yourself off from others. You don’t have to tell everyone; you can just share your news to a few close friends.
- Your partner may be coping and reacting in a different way than you are.
- It’s important to remember that everyone grieves differently. Men, on average, react differently from women when it comes to grief and loss. He may be keeping his feelings inside instead of dealing openly with his loss with others.
- Talk to your doctor or midwife about in-person support groups near you.
- You may want to contact a local counselor to talk to about your loss.
- Pregnancy After Loss Support (PALS): This website has online sources and some in-person support groups in several of the 50 states.
- BabyCenter.com has support groups for women who are going through the same type of loss.
Tuesday, April 25, 2017
Study finds gender imbalance in children born to Indo-Canadian women
Study finds gender imbalance in children born to Indo-Canadian women
Karen Howlett
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/study-finds-gender-inbalance-in-children-born-to-indo-canadian-women/article34794700/ Fewer girls than boys are born to Indian women who immigrate to Canada, a skewed pattern driven by families whose mother tongue is Punjabi, according to a new study.
Report Typo/Error
Karen Howlett
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/study-finds-gender-inbalance-in-children-born-to-indo-canadian-women/article34794700/ Fewer girls than boys are born to Indian women who immigrate to Canada, a skewed pattern driven by families whose mother tongue is Punjabi, according to a new study.
One
of the most surprising findings of the study, to be published Monday in
the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology Canada, is that the preference
for boys does not diminish, regardless of how long women from India
have lived in Canada.
“It’s counterintuitive,” said Marcelo
Urquia, a research scientist at the University of Manitoba’s Centre for
Health Policy and lead author of the study. “We know that the longer
immigrants are in Canada, the more likely they are to align to the host
country.”
But
for many Indian immigrants who express a strong desire for sons, the
study found, the practice of sex selection remains entrenched. Women who
already have two female children are most at risk for abortions in the
second trimester, when parents can learn the sex of the fetus. The study
builds on previous research led by Dr. Urquia that found a deficit in
Canada of more than 4,400 girls over two decades.
The
latest study shows that women born in India who already have two
daughters gave birth to 192 baby boys in Ontario for every 100 girls.
The sex ratios are so distorted, they cannot be explained by natural
causes, Dr. Urquia said. Across the globe, by comparison, the odds of
having a boy over a girl are slightly higher: 107 boys for every 100
girls.
The preference for boys among
many Indian immigrants reveals underlying gender inequities and will not
change without intervention, Dr. Urquia said.
Amanpreet
Brar, a third-year medical student at the University of Toronto who
worked on the study, said gender-selection abortion was talked about
openly in India’s Punjab province, where she grew up, but she was
surprised to learn that it also happens in Canada.
Ms.
Brar, who immigrated to Canada with her family when she was 14,
remembers the traditional celebration called a Lohri in India for
celebrating the birth of a boy.
“It was rare to hear about a girl’s birth being celebrated,” she said.
But
some steps have been taken in Canada to end gender-based customs and
celebrate the birth of girls. In Brampton, Ont., where 40 per cent of
the population is South Asian, one hospital has started handing out
Ladoos, a sugary Indian sweet, when a baby girl is born, Ms. Brar said.
Traditionally in India, Ladoos were just for moms who delivered boys.
The
study analyzed 46,834 birth records for Indian-born mothers who
delivered up to three live births in Ontario hospitals between April,
1993, and March, 2014, and who immigrated to Canada between 1985 and
2012. Mothers who gave birth to twins or triplets were excluded. The
study also looked at the mother’s birth place, her mother tongue and how
long she had been in Canada.
Among all
the mothers having their third child, nearly twice as many males were
born compared with females if the previous two children were girls. The
ratio was even higher among women whose mother tongue was Punjabi: 240
boys to 100 girls. The ratio of males to females did not differ
according to when women arrived in Canada.
In
India, the ratio of male to female newborns varies considerably, with
several northern states consistently showing numbers that favour boys,
the study says. The practice of sex selection is not widespread across
India but it is prevalent, said Kripa Sekhar, executive director of the
South Asian Women’s Centre in Toronto.
“Many members of the community
welcome a girl child,” she said. “It’s a small minority of the community
in Canada that still practises this.”
A
woman has a fundamental right in Canada to decide whether to have an
abortion, and should not come under pressure from a spouse or other
family members to deliver a male child, Ms. Sekhar said.
“This is an issue of choice that is taken away from a woman,” she said. “In many ways it is very abusive.”
Follow on Twitter: @kahowlett
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