Body & Soul
The Morning After Pill: What it is, How it
Works, How it’s Different from the RU-486 Abortion Pill, and Why it’s So
Controversial
Because of the debate over whether the FDA
should approve the Morning After Pill (Plan B) for over-the-counter use, we’ve
compiled some basic information, along with a list of websites where you can
learn more.
What the
Morning After Pill is, and How it Works:
Dr. Susan Wood, former director of the FDA's Office of Women's Health, has
said in the media many times that the Morning After Pill is simply a
multiple dose of a regular birth control pill (or, with some brands, a high
dose of the Pill’s main ingredient), packaged in an easier to use form.
It
was created at the request of physicians who were previously advising
concerned patients to use a common, off-label birth control method of taking
high, multiple doses of the Pill within 72 hours after unprotected sex. (In
fact, some websites list dosages for how to use regular birth control pills
for this purpose.)
If the Morning After Pill is taken soon enough (within 72 hours of
intercourse), it prevents the egg from being fertilized by delaying or
preventing ovulation--just like the regular Pill. The Morning After Pill
may prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in the uterine wall if it’s
not taken soon enough, but according to some sources (such an article we
found on CNN.com), there’s not sufficient
scientific evidence to prove this.
Why the
Morning After Pill is "Controversial" :
The reason the subject of the Morning After Pill is so controversial is
mainly due to the debate over what constitutes “conception” and when it
actually occurs:
In the
“Ask a Women’s Health Specialist” column on
MayoClinic.com, Mayo Clinic breast
health specialist Sandhya Pruthi, M.S. says, “Human conception rarely occurs
immediately after intercourse. Instead, it occurs several days later, after
ovulation.”
Planned Parenthood’s website says this: “According
to general medical definitions of pregnancy that have been endorsed by many
organizations including the American College of Obstetricians and
Gynecologists and the United States Department of Health and Human Services,
pregnancy begins when a pre-embryo completes implantation into the lining of
the uterus (ACOG, 1998; DHHS, 1978; Hughes, 1972; "Make the Distinction?"
2001). Hormonal
methods of contraception, including emergency contraception pills, prevent
pregnancy by inhibiting ovulation and fertilization (ACOG, 1998).”
Others say that whether or not a fertilized but not-yet-implanted egg is
considered “conception” is up to someone’s individual’s religious beliefs.
Regardless of the definition of conception, the consensus of the physicians at
the AMA House of Delegates in 2000 was, according to
Joseph M. Heyman, MD, AMA Chair of
the Council on Medical Services, that
“the sooner the Morning After Pill is taken after intercourse, the more
definitely the mechanism of
action is delaying or preventing ovulation." (Source:
WebMD.)
Two Facts Everyone Agrees On:
1. The Morning After Pill will not affect a fertilized egg
that has already implanted and attached to the Uterus. Ru-486, on the other
hand, interrupts and aborts an established pregnancy.
2. The Morning After Pill does not protect against STDs.
Sources:
WebMD
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/morning-after-pill/AN00592
http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/sex_relationships/facts/morningafterpill.htm
http://www.plannedparenthood.org/pp2/portal/files/portal/medicalinfo/ec/fact-contraception-abortion.xml
http://ec.princeton.edu/questions/index.html
http://news.pajamasmedia.com/2006/07/31/9940060_FDA_prepared_to_.shtml
http://www.webmd.com/content/article/18/1685_51099.htm
http://sexuality.about.com/od/contraception/p/planb.htm
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