In Vitro Fertilization and
Restorative Reproductive Medicine
In Vitro Fertilization
The following information is taken from our Information Sheet “In Vitro Fertilization and the Fertility Industry“. See that document for references. We also have a 5 minute video which is a narrated PowerPoint presentation about how IVF works: In Vitro Fertilization – How Many Die?.
In Vitro Fertilization does not correct the problem causing the infertility but replaces the natural method of becoming pregnant with an entirely different process. Restorative Reproduction Medicine, on the other hand, seeks to determine the cause of infertility and correct the problem. The primary example of restorative reproductive medicine is NaPro Technology, which is an effective alternative for infertile couples.
In vitro fertilization (IVF) is the joining of a woman’s egg and a man’s sperm in a laboratory dish. In vitro means “in glass” or “outside the body.” One or more embryos that result may then be inserted in a woman’s uterus in order to implant and continue developing. Another term used is assisted reproductive technology (ART). The basic process is to stimulate the woman’s ovaries to produce several eggs at one time, rather than the usual one. The eggs are removed from her body in a minor surgery. The sperm donor usually produces sperm through masturbation. The couple seeking to have a child may use any combination of their own or donated eggs and sperm. Several eggs and sperm are incubated together to allow fertilization to take place.
Five days after egg collection and fertilization, the “best” embryos are selected and one or two (or possibly more) are injected into the woman’s uterus. Many additional embryos are never implanted; they are either discarded, made available for research or experimentation, or frozen for possible future use.
The fertility industry is a multi-billion-dollar global industry, with 1.5 million assisted reproductive cycles being performed worldwide each year, resulting in 350,000 births.
While we have compassion for infertile couples seeking to have a baby, there are serious moral problems. The technique includes manipulating the mother’s body with powerful hormones to produce several eggs at once, rather than the usual one. Many eggs are fertilized, but many will die during the 3 – 5 day observation period. Those who appear healthiest will be transferred to the mother’s uterus. Any remaining embryos not used for transfer are frozen for possible later use. Of those who are transferred to the uterus, only about 31% survive. In the past, when 4 or 6 embryos were transferred and they all successfully implanted, the doctors will very often advise selective abortion of some of the embryos in order to increase the chances of survival of the remaining two. Now it is more common to only transfer 2 or 3 to the uterus. The survival rates for thawing of frozen embryos ranges from 50-80% (5) although one lab now reports a 90% survival rate.
In vitro fertilization basically treats “extra” embryos as disposable by-products of one wanted child. But God is the creator of every child, and every child is equally valuable and deserving of nurturing. Embryos created by IVF are subjected to adverse conditions that put their very survival at risk. That is not a respectful way to treat vulnerable human beings. At present, hundreds of thousands of embryos are in frozen storage. Some are donated to research, where they will die. Only a small percent is available for adoption.
Another moral problem with IVF is that it separates the creation of new life from the physical expression of love between the parents. Children are treated as a product to be manufactured, a right to be demanded, rather than a gift from God.
Children who were conceived in a lab have strong feelings: mourning for all their siblings who were discarded or frozen, hurt at how others view them as “some kind of freak or science experiment”, and anger at pro-life individuals who don’t object to IVF because “they are at such an early stage.” See our database to find a link to the Live Action video with IVF children and former IVF doctors, and an email on that topic, “What do IVF Children Say?”
A one page summary of information about IVF similar to this page is available HERE.
Restorative Reproductive Medicine
In Vitro Fertilization replaces the natural method of reproduction with a technological process which treats embryos as a product to be manufactured. Restorative Reproductive medicine works to restore natural function by identifying the cause of the problem and then working to eliminate that cause with medication or surgery.
The menstrual cycle of the woman is followed by observing the days and characteristics of mucus secretion and bleeding. These observable changes correlate strongly with hormone levels and can be very indicative of which days of the cycle a woman is fertile. The information can be used by any woman to avoid pregnancy by refraining from intercourse on fertile days (Fertility Awareness Based Methods (FABM) of family planning), or to achieve pregnancy by planning intercourse on fertile days.
In the case of infertility, hormone levels can also be measured throughout the cycle, and along with the secretion observations provides information that can be obtained in no other way. NaProTechnology, using this information, can be used to diagnose the cause of the infertility. Once identified, medication or surgery can then be used to correct existing infertility, with a greater success rate than IVF.
An explanation of NaProTechnology is available in a short video: “NaProTechnology: New Hope in Infertility”
Please share this information with your church community!
