Advocacy
 

An Open Letter from Physicians to all Americans   This is a letter signed by over 60 doctors and medical professionals which expresses grave concern over the actions of Planned Parenthood in selling fetal tissue, calling it " the most barbaric form of human trafficking."  There is an option on the site for those doctors and medical professionals to add their names to the list.

Recent Research/Reports
 

		After IVF, Some Struggle With What To Do With Leftover Embryos Juli Fragam,  NPR August 20, 2016   This story highlights the issue of what to do with the approximately one million embryos who are left frozen as a result of the in vitro fertilization process.
		How is the developing fetus vulnerable to toxic chemical exposures, and how can our regulatory system more effectively protect our health in the prenatal period? Posted by Molly Rauch, MPH, February, 2012, Physicians for Social Responsibility website
		Study on Premature Babies Raises Questions About Abortion and Medical Care Sarah Kaplan, The Washington Post, May 7, 2015 This article provides an overview of the consequences for unborn children and their mothers as a result of recent developments pushing back the time when a child can survive outside the womb (called viability).  The old standard was approximately 24 weeks and is now closer to 22 weeks, creating questions for neonatal intensive care units and abortion law.  The United States Supreme Court currently permits states to ban abortions after viability.
		Language Experienced in utero Affects Vowel Perception After Birth: a Two-Country Study Christine Moon1,Hugo Lagercrantz, Patricia K Kuhl Acta Paediatrica Vol 102 Issue 2( Feb 2013 In a study of 40 American and 40 Swedish infants, the authors concluded that infants begin learning language while still in the womb;
		Medical Intervention Should Not Define Legal Parenthood,” Dr. Reuven Brandt, BioNews 801  5/11/2015   Using a discussion of a recent case involving artificial insemination (involving a turkey baster), this commentary exposes some of the problems created when it is unclear which individuals ought to have recognized rights and responsibilities for children created outside of a family relationship.
		Scientists Discover Children’s Cells Living in Mothers’ Brains The connection between mother and child is ever deeper than thought Robert Martone Scientific American, December 4, 2012 New research has discovered the presence of the cells of unborn children in the brains of their mothers, decades after the child emerged from the womb.  As the article states, "The profound psychological and physical bonds shared by the mother and her child begin during gestation when the mother is everything for the developing fetus, supplying warmth and sustenance, while her heartbeat provides a soothing constant rhythm."
		Excessive Stress Disrupts the Architecture of the Developing Brain Working Paper 3, Updated Edition. National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. (2005/2014).   This working paper describes how healthy develop­ment of a child’s brain can be derailed by “toxic stress” in the body and the brain during fetal development as well as early childhood, with damaging effects on learning, behavior, and health across the lifespan. This includes significant maternal stress during pregnancy and poor maternal care during infancy.
		Language Experienced in utero Affects Vowel Perception After Birth: a Two-Country Study Christine Moon1,Hugo Lagercrantz, Patricia K Kuhl Acta Paediatrica Vol 102 Issue 2 (Feb 2013) In a study of 40 American and 40 Swedish infants, the authors concluded that infants begin learning language while still in the womb.
		Scientists Have Discovered That The Cells of Unborn Children Live On in the Bodies of Their Mothers September 28, 2012 A National Institute of Health study has discovered that cells may migrate through the placenta between the mother and the fetus, taking up residence in many organs of the body including the lung, thyroid muscle, liver, heart, kidney and skin. These may have a broad range of impacts, from tissue repair and cancer prevention to sparking immune disorders.
		Noninvasive Whole-Genome Sequencing of a Human Fetus Jacob O. Kitzma1, Matthew W. Snyder, Mario Venturam et al Sci. Transl. Med. 4, 137ra76 (2012). Study reviews a new method of prenatal genetic diagnosis.
		Fetal and maternal analgesia/anesthesia for fetal procedures. Van de Velde M, De Buck F. Fetal Diagn Ther. 2012;31(4):201-9.
		Stricter Thinking on Alcohol During Pregnancy Melinda Beck The Wall Street Journal, January 24, 2012 Article discusses the vulnerability of unborn children who are 6-12 weeks old to alcohol consumption by their mothers. Some of the problems cited are fetal abnormalities, stunted growth and neurological problems.
		The Timing and Quality of Early Experiences Combine to Shape Brain Architecture: Working Paper #5. National Scientific Council on the Developing Child February 2008 Study describes how environmental conditions and personal experience, beginning before birth, impacts child’s development.