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An abortifacient is a substance that induces abortion.
History
The ancient Greek colony of Cyrene at one time had an economy based almost entirely on the production and export of Silphium, a powerful abortifacient in the parsley family. Silphium figured so prominently in the wealth of Cyrene that the plant appeared on the obverse and reverse of coins minted there. Silphium, which was native only to that part of Libya, was overharvested by the Greeks and was effectively driven to extinction.
As the Catholic Church gained control of European society, women who dispensed abortifacient herbs found themselves classified as witches and were often persecuted (see witchhunt). Kramer, Heinrich, & Sprenger, Jacob. (1487). Malleus Maleficarum. (Montague Summers, Trans.). Retrieved June 3, 2006.
Present time
Herbal abortifacients
Many herbs sold "over the counter" today, including Wild carrot, Black cohosh, Pennyroyal, Nutmeg, and Mugwort, are themselves abortifacients. Typically the labeling will contraindicate use by pregnant women, but will not contain an explanation for this contraindication.King's American Dispensatory of 1898 recommended a mixture of brewer's yeast and pennyroyal tea as "a safe and certain abortive"
Pharmaceutical abortifacients
The methods of operation of prescription drugs used as abortifacients are better understood than those of traditional herbal remedies, but they have been controversial since the 1980s. The most prominent of these is Mifepristone (also known as "RU-486" and marketed under the brand name "Mifeprex"), which is used in conjunction with Misoprostol (an anti-ulcer drug marketed under the name "Cytotec"). Mifepristone has been approved for inducing abortions in many Western countries since the late 1990s, while this use of Misoprostol is off-label.
Misoprostol alone is sometimes used for self-induced abortion in Latin American countries where legal abortion is not available, and by some immigrants from these countries in the United States who cannot afford a legal abortion.
Pre-implantation labeling controversy
There is a beginning of pregnancy controversy over whether a woman is considered pregnant at the time of fertilization, or at implantation of the embryo in the uterine lining. Some agents have a proposed back-up effect of preventing implantation, although their primary effect is to prevent fertilization. British law and American federal law use implantation as the beginning of pregnancy, thus enabling these agents to be labeled only as contraceptives, rather than abortifacients. The following agents might sometimes prevent implantation of an already-fertilized egg, although they usually have primary effects of preventing conception. They are not effective if taken after implantation.
- Hormonal contraceptives
- Combined estrogen & progesterone:
- Combined oral contraceptive pill ("The Pill")*
- Contraceptive patch
- Contraceptive vaginal ring
- Lunelle (monthly injection)
- Progesterone used alone:
- Progesterone only pill (POP)*
- Depo Provera (injection every three months)
- Implants (such as Norplant or Implanon)
- IntraUterine System ("IUS")
- Combined estrogen & progesterone:
- Intrauterine device ("IUD")*
- Some herbal contraceptives may work primarily by preventing implantation
(*) These methods may also be used as Emergency contraception. POPs are also packaged for use as emergency contraception under the brand name "Plan B".
References
External links
"Abortifacient"