When does life begin

¶ … life begin?

The issue of whether life begins at conception or at a later time is one of constant deliberation in today's society. The arguments for both sides of the issue stem from years of research in human biology, stem cells, abortion, DNA, and ethical issues. In the end, the research has shown convincingly that "life" does not begin at conception, but rather, during the third trimester of life.

According to Mary Ann Warren, there are two senses of being human. First, there is a genetic human, or one that holds the genetic makeup of a human. Secondly, there is a human that is a person, and thus has rights by morality. Warren believes that being a genetic human is not equal to being a person, and that those with only a sense of genetic humanity cannot be said to have "life." To be a person, Warren argues, a genetic person must be conscious of objects, events, or internal conditions, particularly in terms of pain sensation, must be able to develop reason, must be able to achieve self-motivated behaviors, independent of genetic or external control, must be able to communicate in some way, and must be self-aware (Warren, 223). Warren's point, then, is that life begins at the point where the genetic human becomes a person that is capable of feelings, thinking, reasoning, and communicating. Thus, life begins far after conception.

Biologically, during the first twenty-four weeks, the fetus requires a mother's womb in order to survive. Organs are being developed, including the brain and lungs, and the body is being fed by the mother. Without the womb, the child would perish, since the organs are simply not developed enough to enable survival. Until the lungs are capable of passing oxygen to the bloodstream, the child would not survive even on a respirator. While medical science has allowed the fetus to survive following twenty-three weeks, in some cases, medical research has shown that without extreme intervention, even these fetuses will perish. Even if the fetus were to survive, many are left with severe mental and physical disabilities (American Medical Association, 1998). Thus, research has shown that life cannot be sustained until the third trimester of development, and thus, cannot be said to begin prior to that point.

Even the Principle of Medical Ethics, the code followed by those in the medical profession, contains an ethical passage that relates to the debate over when life begins. According to the ethics code "A physician shall, while caring for a patient, regard responsibility to the patient as paramount." (AMA, VIII). Since this ethical principle is joined by the principle that "A physician shall respect the law..." (AMA, III), and since taking the life of another is against the law, the legal practice of physicians to perform abortion obviously stems from their concept that the life of the patient is primary, and that the termination of a pregnancy prior to the third trimester is not an act of taking a life.