The ABC has reported that "A major review of scientific evidence in the UK has found that the human foetus feels no pain before 24 weeks into term".
In response, Life News quotes Paul Tully, the general secretary of a British prol life group, 'Society for the Protection of Unborn Children' (SPUC). Mr. Tully described RCOG as "an organization that supports abortion so its take on foetal pain is expected" and "The RCOG supports the killing of 570 babies every day in Britain, at all stages of pregnancy, through the abortion policies it pursues and the lucrative activities of its members."
Life News reported that US National Right to Life Attorney, Mary Spaulding Baulch is disputing the findings of the Royal College of Obstetricians. She stated that most scientific research says that pain exists and that "An objective expert in neurobiology would be appalled by the stunning lack of scholarship in the RCOG article."
The suggestion that "The connections in the foetal brain are not fully formed before the 24 week mark" or that "the foetus is not conscious" (according to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists) contradicts other scientific reports that state "Research has indicated that in fact abortions performed on babies between 20-30 weeks is a uniquely vulnerable time, since the pain system is fully established, yet the higher level pain-modifying system (pain inhibitors) has barely begun to develop. A 20-30 week old foetus actually will feel more pain than an adult. (“Physical Examination and Health Assessment” by Jarvis 5th Edition p 183).
Dr. Paul Ranalli made a presentation on "Pain, Foetal Development, and Partial-birth Abortion" on June 27, 1997 in which he outlined that "Elements of the pain-conveying system (spino-thalamic system) begin to be assembled at 7 weeks; enough development has occurred by 12-14 weeks that some pain perception is likely, and continues to build through the second trimester. By 20 weeks, the spino-thalamic system is fully established and connected."
He described three indicators that provide evidence for the pain felt by an unborn baby:
"There are three different indicators providing evidence that the foetus feels pain.
Anatomical
- pain receptors spread over the body in stages: 8-16 weeks
- pain impulse connections in the spinal cord link up and reach the thalamus (the brain's reception center): 7-20 weeks (summarized by Anand, K.J.S., Atlanta)
Physiological/Hormonal
- foetuses withdraw from painful stimulation
- two types of stress hormones, normally released by adults subjected to pain, are released in massive amounts by the foetus subjected to a needle puncture to draw a blood sample:
(a) from 19 weeks onward (N. Fisk; London, England)
(b) from 16 weeks onward (J. Partch; Kiel, Germany)
Behavioral
- withdraw from pain
- change in vital signs. "
The ongoing agenda of the abortion lobby and the medical practitioners who carry out abortions continues to blur the lines between science and business. Any mother who has felt her baby moving inside her womb and has seen ultrasound footage of behaviour (not unlike that after birth) knows that this new review is seriously flawed.
