In Vitro Fertilization
In Vitro Fertilization
Right to Life of Northeast Indiana
Stance
Right to Life of Northeast Indiana (RLNI) opposes the practice of In Vitro Fertilization (IVF). We grieve with families who suffer from infertility and rejoice at the birth of all children, regardless of how they were conceived. However, IVF leads to the destruction of human life, engages in eugenics, and results in the commodification of children. In upholding its mission to promote and defend innocent human life, RLNI opposes IVF and promotes life-affirming options.
What it is
In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a process in which eggs and sperm are collected and combined in a laboratory to create embryos outside the body. The resulting embryos are monitored and selected for transfer to a woman’s uterus in hopes of achieving pregnancy, while additional embryos are often frozen for future use, stored indefinitely, put up for adoption, used for research, or discarded depending on the decisions made after treatment.
Birth Defects Rate:
Babies conceived in IVF have a 25% increased rate of birth defects affecting their heart, urinary tract, and reproductive organs.
Embryo Survival to Birth:
93%-97% of embryos conceived in an IVF lab never make it to birth.
Thawing and Rehydrating Loss:
Not all embryos survive the rehydrating and thawing process—as many as 5-10 die in the process.
Core Moral Concern
IVF commodifies human beings. It puts adults’ desires before the needs and well-being of children. It knowingly subjects human beings to unacceptable amounts of risk. As evidenced by the low number of IVF-conceived embryos who make it to birth (7% to 2.3%), the IVF process causes an enormous loss of human life. Estimates show over 4 million children conceived in US IVF clinics each year never make it to birth. That number towers above the US abortion rate by at least 5 times.
Alternatives
Studies show that three years of FEMM or NaPro technology can achieve pregnancy rates comparable to three years of IVF while working with the body's natural systems and avoiding the moral concerns associated with IVF. Neither approach guarantees a child, and some couples must ultimately bear the grief of infertility.
Fact Sheet
Access and download our educational fact sheet for more detailed study and distribution.
The solution to infertility is not ultimately a baby, but recognizing that only God can fully satisfy the deepest longings of the human heart.
Questions or want to learn more? Contact us.
rlni@ichooselife.org | (260) 471-1849
