No foetal pain before 24 weeks

By Lisa Potter  on Friday 25 June 2010

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The human foetus cannot feel pain before 24 weeks according to an official review of scientific evidence.

Brain connections are not fully formed and the environment of the womb creates a state of induced sleep, the review by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists said.

Without the formed nerve connections, the area that processes the feeling of pain does not work properly. 'It can be concluded that the foetus cannot experience pain in any sense prior to this gestation,' the report states.

Supporters of the current abortion law have welcomed the report whilst those campaigning for further limits on abortion say the report does not reflect the full debate on the issue. Anti-abortion campaigners argue that survival rates for very premature babies have greatly increased over the last ten years and abortion is still the termination of a life.

MPs rejected a proposal to reduce the time limit for abortion from 24 to 20 weeks in the last vote in Parliament in 2008. 

Should the limit be lowered? Share your thoughts - however controversial - on abortion in the box below.

Friday 25 June 2010

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If those MP's had ever stepped foot on a neonatal unit and witnessed first hand what at prem baby born at 24 weeks looks like, they would be shocked!! By all accounts its far from foetus like and really is a little human being all be it tiny. I know a woman who delivered her daughter at 22 weeks! And whilst her journey has not been smooth sailing she is by all accounts a healthy child. If the government will not reduce the limit for abortion to 20 weeks then any woman considering it after that stage should be made to visit a neonatal unit before going ahead so she can see first hand exactly what life grows inside her before she takes that path.
Comment by Kerry on June 28 13:04

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