Should abortion be legal, or should it be outlawed? It's a very controversial topic, but with a bit of analysis we can see both sides of the argument.
TL;DR: Abortion should be legal
Abortion should be legal in my opinion for 3 main reasons (I understand there are more, I am just offering up 3 of my own).
1: Pregnancy’s affect on the female’s life
2: Relationship between fetus and host
3: Pregnancy circumstances
Pregnancy’s Effects on the Female’s Life:
When you are pregnant, if you would like your baby to be healthy, there are plenty of things you should/shouldn’t do, which can drastically alter your lifestyle. You may have to quit a lot of your favorite hobbies. You may not be able to work your job anymore. You’ll be physically restricted in a lot of ways. This process lasts around 38 weeks. You also gain weight, which takes a while to lose after the baby is born and can cause a lot of self-consciousness issues in females directly following child birth. You will most likely have lower back pain/soreness or problems with posture once your belly begins to increase in size. Your day to day life will not be as physically involved as usual, which can affect your career and health, depending on what activities you were accustomed to performing before you got pregnant. In the gym, you are no longer supposed to live heavy weights, or perform high-impact exercises. This can be a problem if you are an avid gym goer. You can’t scuba dive, water ski, do contact sports, and it’s recommended to not eat too many seafood options due to high mercury content.
Relationship Between Fetus and Host:
In scientific terms, a parasitic relationship is classified as a relationship in which one organism, the parasite, lives in or on another organism, the host, and is harmful to it. Well, a fetus is harmful in the sense that it detracts nutrients from the daily food you eat, similar to a tapeworm. Additionally, pregnancy can cause fatigue, nausea, tender/swollen breasts, heartburn, constipation, increased stress levels, mood swings, bouts of sadness, decreased sex life, increased risk of iron deficiency anemia, increased stress on the heart, hearth rhythm issues, heart valve issues, congestive heart failure, worsening of asthma, increased risk of developing blood clots in legs if you have atrial fibrillation, back pain, severe depression (if a miscarriage occurs), anxiety, shortness of breath, leg cramps, decreased sleep, breast growth, contractions (duh), spider veins, frequent urination, vaginal discharge, food aversion/cravings, and in worst case, death. Yes, death due to pregnancy is still a real thing.
over 600 women die each year in the United States as a result of pregnancy or delivery complications
Clearly, a fetus does not have a healthy impact on the body. Some pregnancy’s go off without a hitch, and are relatively pleasant in comparison to others, but the process generally affects the body in a couple severe ways.
Pregnancy Circumstances: Should she keep the child?
A woman can get pregnant in many different ways.
If a woman is raped, and becomes pregnant, should she be forced to keep the child?
If a woman has a one night stand, the contraceptive(s) fail, and she becomes pregnant, should she be forced to keep the child?
If a woman does not have the financial means of supporting a child, and becomes pregnant, should she be forced to keep the child?
If a lesbian couple decide to have a baby, and one of the females becomes pregnant through insemination, and then they break up, or they both decide they don’t want the baby, should they carry the baby to term?
If a woman is pregnant, and is scared of the outcome of the pregnancy, or scared of death (although rare, it still happens), should she have to endure childbirth?
My answer is no to all of these. Your opinion may differ, but I believe it to be a woman’s right (and if a man could somehow get pregnant, a man’s right) to have control over her own body.
If I was pregnant I would want the freedom of choice.
