RU-486, or mifepristone, is a steroid that ends a pregnancy by inhibiting progesterone,1 the hormone that is required for fetal development. It is also known as a medical abortion and can be used to end pregnancies that are less than 7 weeks (49 days) along.
RU-486 is administered in two phases. One the first day, a 600 mg dose of mifepristone is administered that kills the baby by blocking progesterone. Two days later, a 400 mg dose of misoprostol is administered to expel the baby through the uterus.2 In 5-8 cases out of 1000 the drugs fail and a surgical abortion is required.3
There are many common side effects to RU-486 including cramping, bleeding, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, headache, dizziness, back pain, and tiredness.4 Other possible side effects include heavy bleeding, abdominal pain, serious infection, and death.5
One 25 year old woman reported, “I was issued RU-486 in effort of obtaining an abortion…I had unbelievable abdominal pains, I can’t even put it in words…The only thing I could do was to lie on the floor and pull my hair to deal with the pain…”6
The FDA released 820 reports of complications with RU-486 between 2000 and 2006.7 Not only has RU-486 caused hundreds of physical complications, it has emotionally damaged women who often see their unborn children expelled.
One woman stated, “Around lunchtime, I felt a popping sensation and went to the [toilet], to see my baby lying there. I broke my heart sobbing in this cold impersonal hospital bathroom, but it was too late to turn back now. I wanted to die.” 8
In the 1997 Post Abortion Review, David Rheardon, Ph.D. noted the following about RU-486:
Finally, if the aborted human fetus is expelled into the woman’s sanitary napkin–with its head, arms, and legs clearly intact–this self-incriminating sight may be burned into her memory for the rest of her life. In this last respect, the emotional impact of such chemically induced abortion may be even more pronounced than it is for women undergoing ‘blind’ surgical abortions. It is no wonder, then, that even Edouard Sakiz, former president of Roussel Uclaf, admits that RU-486 abortions involve an ‘appalling psychological ordeal.’9
At least 7 women have died from using RU-486 with 6 of those from visits to Planned Parenthood. In several cases, Planned Parenthood failed to administer the drug according to FDA guidelines.10 Planned Parenthood is not a place you want to trust with your health.
The facts about RU-486 are simple: it is not safe, it will kill your baby, and it will possibly cause you permanent emotional and physical harm.