When does life begin? Here are five critical points in a pregnancy and the misconceptions surrounding them – Genetic Literacy Project

Like most aspects of biology, early human development involves many complex processes. Despite the rhetoric around these issues, clear lines between having a heart and not having a heart or being able to survive outside of the uterus are scarce, or nonexistent.

There arent these set black-and-white points for much of this, says obstetrician-gynecologist Nisha Verma, a fellow with the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists in Washington, D.C.

Heres whats known about five key aspects of pregnancy biology that often come up in abortion debates.

Thats because how dates are determined is supremely confusing. The standard pregnancy clock actually starts ticking before a sperm cell encounters an egg, two weeks before, on average.

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A Texas law bans abortions after detection of an unborn childs heartbeat. But the rhythmic sounds heard on an ultrasound early in pregnancy arent caused by the opening and closing of heart valves as they move blood through the hearts chambers, the motion that produces a typicallub dubsound. Thats because those chambers havent yet developed. On early ultrasounds, the heartbeat-like sounds are created by the ultrasound machine itself.

The word viability is often used as a sharp cut-off point to mark the age at which a fetus could survive outside of the uterus. The problem is that one clear cut-off does not exist.

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When does life begin? Here are five critical points in a pregnancy and the misconceptions surrounding them - Genetic Literacy Project