Decades ago, doomsayers like the debunked author, Paul Ehrlich, who wrote the Population Bomb, tried to terrify generations with tall tales of world overpopulation. Their argument was if someone truly cared about the environment, they wouldn’t bring another human into the world.The “Bomb” bombed. Today, it’s not that people are having too many babies, it’s that they aren’t having enough. As head of an organization, Students for Life, with more than 1,700 groups on college and university campuses in all 50 states, we track this closely, especially as it’s now reported that the student population has reached its pinnacle this year and is expected to decline going further. Looking for reasons, experts point fingers at everything from women working to increased stress levels to decline in support for families. Where they haven’t looked is in America’s water.
Mifepristone, the first of two drugs used in the Chemical Abortion process, was approved for use in 2000. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) based the drug’s approval on a 1996 study showing that it could be used and disposed of without significant adverse effects. Even though the study found that small amounts of mifepristone entered the waterway after use, those amounts were determined to be too little to pose any significant health or environmental risk. But the FDA had no way of predicting what would happen next. Since 2001, the first year after mifepristone’s approval, chemical abortion pill usage has increased by more than 800%, from 70,500 reported chemical abortions in 2021 to 648,500 in 2023. The small amounts of mifepristone entering the water aren’t small anymore. Instead, every year, more than 50 tons of chemically tainted blood and placenta tissue, along with human remains are flushed away. That’s horrifying on its face. But it could also be affecting America’s fertility. The organization I lead is raising this with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as hearings are underway, looking at the Safe Drinking Water Act. Mifepristone works by blocking progesterone, a hormone that allows a woman’s uterus to feed and protect her baby. By blocking a pregnant woman’s progesterone, mifepristone effectively starves a preborn baby while a second drug forces contractions. But progesterone isn’t only important for pregnant women.In men, progesterone plays a vital role in reproduction and fertility by aiding in sperm development and supporting testosterone production. In women trying to conceive, progesterone also plays a vital role by helping regulate the menstrual cycle and preparing the uterus for baby to implant. If progesterone is blocked, infertility may result.Pregnant woman reading label on bottle with medicine, with vitamins. Female sitting at home in bed with glass of water medicine. Pregnancy, health, pharmaceuticals, care and people.
