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Should Abortion Be Legalized?

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Should Abortion be legalized?

Introduction

To fully understand the issue of abortion, we must first understand exactly what abortion is and the history behind the issue.

According to the Webster’s Dictionary (2012) abortion is defined as the “termination of a pregnancy after, accompanied by, resulting in, or closely followed by the death of the embryo or fetus.” An abortion can take place under two different conditions. The two conditions are therapeutic and elective. Therapeutic abortion is when a pregnancy is terminated due to medical condition(s) that may endanger a mother’s health. On the other hand elective abortion is the termination of a pregnancy under any other conditions outside of health (Medical News Today, 2009). Throughout history there were various methods that were used in terminating pregnancies. However even though the methods differed, the trimester or duration of the pregnancy determined what type of procedure is used. Also the severity of the side effects and pain differed by what type of procedure use. According to the Medical News Today (2009) the methods used are clinical, surgical, and herbs. The two main types of abortions are the clinical and surgical. Although both procedures have their risks the herbal tends to be considered “extremely dangerous” compared to clinical and surgical abortion due to its history of causing internal injuries (Medical News Today). Foremost, both the clinical and the surgical procedure are used to thin the uterus wall to induce the pregnancy. Secondly, both procedures use drugs. Thirdly, there are health risks involved in any procedure chosen. Furthermore, cramping similar to those experienced during a menstrual cycle is experienced following the clinical and surgical procedure. Lastly, medical attention of a physician is required. Both of the procedures use different

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