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Level 3 – Intermediate
Octuplets
The controversy surrounding multiple births caused by fertility drugs has been rekindled by the recent birth of octuplets in Texas. It is the first time that octuplets have been born alive - but there was nothing natural about this birth.
Firstly, the mother took fertility drugs to induce pregnancy. When she was told she was carrying eight foetuses, she refused a selective abortion. She had to spend several weeks lying almost upside down, in order to ease pressure on the foetuses. Towards the end of the pregnancy she had to give up eating solid food, so as to make room for the foetuses. She was fed through a drip directly into her blood. Only one baby was born naturally; the others were born by caesarean section. One of the babies died in hospital after a week.
The seven surviving babies are now a month old and they are all still in intensive care in hospital. They will stay in intensive care in hospital for more than three months. Doctors say that they only have a 75% chance of developing normally.
Natural multiple births giving so many babies are extremely rare; it is modern medical technology that has made such births possible. Twins and triplets are quite common today.
Many doctors believe that it is wrong to let women taking fertility drugs have so many babies at once. The health risks to both mother and babies are greatly increased, because women's bodies are not adapted to carrying so many foetuses. Another problem is the cost; the three-month hospital cost for octuplets is at least $2 million. Is society prepared to pay for this sort of care?
And of course, the cost of bringing up seven children is likely to be enormous. These parents looked for sponsors to help them find a bigger house and buy a van. One company has offered them free baby products: but they are only getting help because their story is in the national newspapers. This doesn't happen for the thousands of couples who 'only' have twins, triplets or quadruplets.
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C2 Mastery
