Humanae Vitae and Contraception in the U.S.: A Message of Mercy

1. Humanae Vitae and Contraception in the U.S.: A Message of Mercy Marilyn A. D. Yee, B.S., Pharm.D.

2. Why this message now? • At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: Nothing is covered that shall not be revealed: nor hid that shall not be known. That which I tell you in the dark, speak ye in the light: and that which you hear in the ear, preach ye upon the housetops. And fear ye not them that kill the soul; but rather fear him that can destroy both soul and body in hell. - Mt. 10:26-32

3. Discussion points • How contra-ception got started in U.S. • Church and Papal teachings of Marriage, the Human Person, the Author of Life and Family • Beginning of life - - by the numbers • Contra-ceptives • How they work • Effectiveness • Side effects, warnings& adverse effects

4. Discussion Points • Humanae Vitae • Purpose • Prophetic statements

5. Discussion Points • Contraception 50 years later • Contraception/Abortion link • Abortion levels • Consumers’ health • $$ and cents • Population effect • Divorce rate

6. Discussion Points • Support • Natural Family Planning (NFP) • Retreats • Books • Prayer

7. MERCY Love coping with evil. - Venerable Fr. John Hardon

8. How contra-ception began in U.S. • Malthus (1766-1834) – “…arable land area of earth severely limits food production and this limit is the determining factor of people the earth can support.” “The poor must delay their ages of marriage. Poor relief disrupts the laws of nature which wants the selection of the fit and the elimination of others.” • Darwin – Theory of Natural Selection

9. How contra-ception began in U.S. • Galton (1822-1911) – Founder of Eugenics = Malthusianism + Social Darwinism • Goal: to give “more suitable races or strains of blood a better chance of prevailing speedily over the less suitable…” • Ramifications of Malthusianism • Neo-Malthusianism – Margaret Sanger (1883-1966) – Founder, Planned Parenthood in U.S. • “In sexual intercourse pleasure is the good and children are the risk or even the evil to be avoided. Other persons are interesting insofar as they procure me pleasure or profit. Therefore, marriage is rejected, ‘free love’ is extolled.”

10. How contra-ception began in U.S. • Ramifications of Malthusianism • Organicism – Herbert Spence (1820-1903) • “Human society is a body whose members have different worth seen in utilitarian terms or as to their dignity. It is inadmissable that the less endowed should do harm to the whole species. Therefore it is necessary to help the process of natural selection. • Galton would add, “The selection had to be artificial. Doctors would have a primary role to play in Eugenics.” • Environmentalism – Malthus

11. How contra-ception began in U.S. • Sanger & other eugenecists late 19th C. – early 20th C. • Newsletters • Reproductive “health” centers • Ministers

12. Church and Papal teachings – Marriage • Vatican opposition, 1930 Pope Pius XI’s CastiiConnubii Holy Matrimony is the principle and foundation of domestic society and therefore of all (sexual) intercourse - - conjugal act - - of which the desired fruits are children.

13. Church and Papal teachings - Marriage • Vatican opposition from PPXI’s CastiiConnubii, continued Conjugal love (love shared between husband and wife united in Holy Matrimony) exists to unite them in holiness (unitive) and make them co-creators of life with Him (procreative).

14. Church and Papal teachings - Marriage • Vatican opposition from PPXI’s CastiiConnubii, continued Anything, including abortion or contraception that frustrates the natural power and purpose of the conjugal act deteriorates conjugal love and undermines the Sacrament of Matrimony.

15. Church and Papal teachings – Author of Life and Human Beings • I am the first and I am the last. Isaiah 44:6 • Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) • As Supreme Being, God is the Author of Life. Creation is the beginning and the foundation of all God’s works. All of His creatures exist and are ordered to His Glory but man is the summit of the Creator’s work.

16. Church and Papal teachings – Author of Life and Human Beings • The human being, of all creatures, God created in His Image. Genesis 1:27 • The Almighty uniquely created human beings to have a physical body, intellect, free will and an immortal soul. We share this spiritual dimension, our immortal soul, with God who is Spirit. • Our soul is created by God and infused into our body at the moment of conception. - CCC

17. Church and Papal teachings – Author of Life and Human Beings • Therefore, human life is sacred and it remains forever in a special relationship with the Creator, who is its sole end. • So that man would not be alone God created woman. Genesis 1:28 • Man and woman, though different physically were created with equal dignity in God’s Image. • In His infinite wisdom He created man and woman to compliment one another.

18. Church and Papal teachings – Author of Life and human beings • Sexuality, a gift from God, which affects all aspects of the human person concerns especially our capacity to love and to procreate. • Our sexuality deepens our understanding of one another drawing us closer in communion. • The virtue of chastity brings in union our gift of sexuality within the person.

19. Church and Papal teachings – Author of Life and human beings • Living chastely involves… • Understanding of self • Faithfulness to prayer • Obedience to God’s Commandments • Living a virtuous life = self-control, self-mastery … so as to avoid all acts or thoughts not in accordance with Church teaching about the use of our reproductive powers.

20. Before I formed you in the womb I knew you. Jeremiah 1:5

21. Beginning of life – by the numbers 1=ovulation 2=sperm release 3=fertilization/conception 4=embryo implants

22. Two female chemical regulators (hormones) Estrogen Progesterone • Largely made by ovaries • Regulates monthly cycle, including menses • Dominant hormone from around 8 weeks of pregnancy • Largely made by ovaries • Regulates changes in uterus to accept embryo • Dominant hormone when become pregnant up to around 8 weeks

23. How contra-ception began in U.S. • The diethylstilbestrol (DES) story • Man-made, estrogen-like drug, 1940’s • First used to stimulate livestock growth • Marketed to U.S. women 1940 – 1970 to prevent spontaneous abortion (miscarriage) • “Primum, Nil Nocere” = First do no harm • Withdrawn from market – 2x rate increase breast & cervical cancers; large number irregular findings urinary & reproductive tracts in DES offspring

24. How contra-ception began in U.S. • Eugenecists collaborate with drug companies • First oral contra-ceptive developed during early 1950’s • Clinically tested in Puerto Rico, Massachusetts, & Los Angeles latter 1950’s • High dose estrogen, Enovid, approved 1961

25. How contra-ception began in U.S. • Enovid approved by FDA but held up in courts for availability until 1965 and 1972 • In 1965 American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists changed definition of pregnancy long held since Hippocrates (5 B.C.) from“conception”to“…implantation of the embryo into the uterus.”

26. Contraceptives – how they work • Barrier Methods • Hormonal

27. Contraceptives – how they work • Barrier methods block sperm from fertilizing egg; prohibit conception • Spermicide • Diaphragm • Cervical cap • Female condom • Male condom • Intrauterine device (IUD) - copper • Female sterilization or male sterilization

28. Contraceptives – how they work • Effectiveness – barrier methods • The “human” factor • “Perfect use” vs “typical use” • Do not understand package directions • Forget to take • Come up with own way to take medication Refer to handouts 1 & 2

29. Side effects and disadvantages – barrier contraceptives • Side effects • allergies, • infections • irritations, • reduced sexual desire (sterilization) • cramping, • backaches • leg pain or soreness • weight loss or gain • nervousness • anemia • slowed heart rate or fainting with insertion • irregular or no menses • breakage (IUD) • Disadvantages • Little to no protection against sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) including HIV • must be placed by M.D. (diaphragm & IUD) • may become damaged or removed during sexual intercourse

30. Warnings and adverse reactions – barrier contraceptives • IUD • copper toxicity • ectopic pregnancy, • pelvic infection often leads to infertility or sterility especially in women who have not had children or wish to have them later • embedment of IUD • IUD continued • torn uterus, bladder, small or large intestine, appendix or cervix • future miscarriages • cysts • blood infection leading to shock

31. Contraceptives • Hormonal – estrogen/progestin combination, progestin only • The Pill – oral contraceptive • Contraceptive patch • Vaginal Ring • Injection • Intrauterine device (IUD) – hormonal • The “Morning After” Pill = Emergency Contraception = Plan B • Implant • RU-486 = The “French” abortion pill plus misoprostol • Ella

32. Hormonal contraceptives

33. Hormonal contraceptives – each works one or more ways • Block ovulation – hormonal release of egg from ovary • Thickening of cervical mucus making it difficult for sperm to reach egg • IUD may detach sperm tail from head • Slow embryo travel through fallopian tube • Block inner lining of uterus from normal development to receive 5-7 day old embryo

34. Hormonal contraceptives – effectiveness, refer to handout 1

35. Side effects – hormonal contraceptives • nausea • breast tenderness • increased blood pressure • headache • breakthrough or irregular bleeding • fatigue • mood changes • osteoporosis, abdominal pain, nervousness, depression (Depo-Provera injection) • increased appetite • weight gain • acne • oily skin • more hair growth • more LDL (“bad”) cholesterol • less HDL cholesterol (“good” cholesterol) • weakness or fatigue

36. Disadvantages – hormonal contraceptives • Cost • easy to forget once, twice or more during cycle • if forget requires another method of contraceptive (usually barrier) • no protection from STDs • immune system (infection fighting part of body) always weakened - -> increase chances bacterial or viral infections • Constant state of pregnancy so feel this way, e.g., nausea, vomiting, spotting, breast tenderness, weight gain • several common drug interactions which can lower effectiveness of oral birth control, e.g., anti-epilepsy, all antibiotics, some anti-fungals, some anti-depressants, and others

37. Warnings and adverse reactions – hormonal contraceptives • Risk of breast, uterine & cervical cancer • Low dose estrogen may cause breakthrough ovulation which can lead to an abortion • More blood clots may lead to stroke, deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or death • Ectopic pregnancy • Cysts on ovary (IUD) • Embedment of IUD • May cause sterility or infertility

38. Chemical abortions per year – U.S. • Estimate based upon 2007 hormonal contraceptive use (oral contraceptives, IUD, implant, injection) • 82 million chemical abortions each year Between 1965-2007, an estimated 2.2 billion chemical abortions have occurred in U.S. Clowes, B. Ph.D. Facts of Life: Chapter 19: U.S. Abortion Statistics: The Number of Surgical Abortions that have Been Committed in the U.S.

39. RU-486 with misoprostol – warnings & adverse reactions • Intense cramping and contractions mimic real labor • Extreme bleeding possibly leading to death • Prolonged bleeding – reports up to 90 days • One in 12 failure rate leading to surgical abortion • If baby survives abortion very high risk for mental/physical birth defects • Life-threatening infections

40. Warnings and adverse reactions – hormonal contraceptives • Oral contraceptives • Liver cancer • Gall bladder disease • Endometriosis • Fibroids in uterus • Migraines • Mental depression • Cycle irregularities • Vaginal bleeding

41. Catholic Church teaching –contraceptives • The practice of contraception, apart from any regrettable circumstances associated with its use, is and of itself, evil. This is because contraceptive intercourse deliberately acts against the basic human good of procreation, a good that, by God’s arrangement, is meant to be fostered or respected in every engagement in or abstention from marital intercourse. Furthermore, in the case of a birth control drug that is also an abortifacient, the destruction of the basic good of human life is risked as well. Mirkes, R.: The Norplant Debate: A Rebuttal. Ethics and Medics. Pope John Center Braintree, Massachusetts, 4:1, April 1991.

42. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been purchased at a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

43. Pope Paul VI’s Humanae Vitae, 1968 • Purpose • Natural Law engraved and written in the soul of each and every man, because it is human reason ordaining him to do good and forbidding him to sin • Catholic teaching on life, love & human sexuality • Responsible parenthood within marriage for the benefit of children & holiness of couple • Restore understanding of totality of women, e.g., dignity, respect, nurturing, reproducing role • address so-called need for population control

44. Church and Papal teachings – family • CCC • Christ chose to be born and grow up in the bosom of the Holy Family of Joseph and Mary. The Church is nothing other than “the family of God.” • “A man and a woman united in marriage, together with their children, form a family.” • “The family is the original cell of social life.”

45. Church and Papal teachings - family • CCC • “The importance of the family for the life and well-being of society entails a particular responsibility for society to support and strengthen marriage and the family. Civil authority should consider it a grave duty “to acknowledge the true nature of marriage and the family, to protect and foster them, to safeguard public morality, and promote domestic prosperity.”

46. Pope Paul VI’s Humanae Vitae, 1968 • PPVI’s Prophetic statements – consequences of life lived outside Catholic teaching. • Contraception would lead to • conjugal infidelity • a general lowering of morality • men ceasing to respect women in their totality leading to women treated as “mere instruments of selfish enjoyment” rather than cherished partners • a massive imposition of contraception by unscrupulous governments

47. Contraceptive impact today - U.S. • Divorce rate within marriages using contraception • 80% of marriages use contraception of which 50-60% end in divorce • Population effect • Replacement level fertility (RLF) = necessary for maintenance of stable population numbers of youth to elderly in a society • U.S. RLF = 1.99. Minimum RLF = 2.1

48. Contraceptive impact today - U.S. • $$ and cents • Contraceptives – barrier & hormonal = $7 billion industry annually based upon 2007 figures • Consumers’ health • More than 65 million infected with STDs • 19.5 million new infections each year • Now 25 more STDs than 1950’s (5) • Breast cancer • Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) = aggressive with high death rate • If start oral contraceptives before age 18  3.7 times risk of TNBC • If recent users oral contraceptives in past five years  4.2 times risk of TNBC

49. Contraceptive impact today – U.S. • Teen pregnancy rate • 750,000 annually still sky high despite slight decline after abstinence use under Bush • Abortion numbers annually • Over 1.3million surgical abortions • 60% of women have abortions because of failed contraception

50. Contraceptive impact today – U.S. • Emotional impact • Mothers are more unhappy today than ever before. Why? If the pill made motherhood “better,” then one would expect that mothers would be happier now than they were in 1972 before the birth rate fell dramatically as contraception use expanded. Instead, as between 1972 and 2006, the happiness of U.S. mothers fell just as dramatically. - Wharton School of Business • need for post-contraception counseling due to Post Abortion Syndrome • Ella makes 100 oral contraceptives WHY?