Talon-chan
I'm not sure yet on exactly where I stand on how much we ought to regulate a woman's rights to eat what she wants, drink what she wants, and otherwise consume what she wants while pregnant.
It just seems obvious to me that if one supports restrictions on what a woman can and cannot consume because one wishes to protect the health/life of the fetus inside of her... there has to be some point at which we stop.
It seems rediculous to say "no, a woman can drink/do drugs/smoke herself nearly to death if she wants to be rid of the fetus in the late term because her right to consume what she wants is more important than the health of the child within her (that otherwise could sustain its own life and be classified as a person legally if removed via Csection or premature birth) just because it is currently in her uterus."
But it also seems rediculous to say, "A woman must rest X hours a day and is not permitted to work more than Y hours a day. She must eat exactly Z servings of green vegetables and A servings of fruits. She must go to a 'proper-pregnancy' class at least B times a week. She must go to a doctor C times a week for a dosage of hormones/vitamins/whatever to ensure a healthy pregnancy or else she will go to jail for harming her fetus/child."
Somewhere between these two extremes is what most people would accept as reasonable. And while I don't have an answer for myself yet... it is an answer anyone who seeks to regulate a woman's consumption of materials during pregnancy must find an answer for at some point in time.
It just seems obvious to me that if one supports restrictions on what a woman can and cannot consume because one wishes to protect the health/life of the fetus inside of her... there has to be some point at which we stop.
It seems rediculous to say "no, a woman can drink/do drugs/smoke herself nearly to death if she wants to be rid of the fetus in the late term because her right to consume what she wants is more important than the health of the child within her (that otherwise could sustain its own life and be classified as a person legally if removed via Csection or premature birth) just because it is currently in her uterus."
But it also seems rediculous to say, "A woman must rest X hours a day and is not permitted to work more than Y hours a day. She must eat exactly Z servings of green vegetables and A servings of fruits. She must go to a 'proper-pregnancy' class at least B times a week. She must go to a doctor C times a week for a dosage of hormones/vitamins/whatever to ensure a healthy pregnancy or else she will go to jail for harming her fetus/child."
Somewhere between these two extremes is what most people would accept as reasonable. And while I don't have an answer for myself yet... it is an answer anyone who seeks to regulate a woman's consumption of materials during pregnancy must find an answer for at some point in time.
