An abortifacient is a substance that induces abortion.
Many herbs sold "over the counter" today, including Wild carrot, Black cohosh, Pennyroyal, Nutmeg, and Mugwort, are themselves abortifacients. Typically the labeling will contraindicate use by pregnant women, but will not contain an explanation for this contraindication.
King's American Dispensatory of 1898 recommended a mixture of brewers yeast and pennyroyal tea as "a safe and effective abortifacient".
Pharmaceutical abortifacients
The methods of operation of prescription drugs used as abortifacients are better understood than those of traditional herbal remedies, but they have been controversial since the 1980s. The most prominent of these is Mifepristone (also known as "RU-486" and marketed under the brand name "Mifeprex"), which is used in conjunction with Misoprostol (an anti-ulcer drug marketed under the name "Cytotec"). Mifepristone has been approved for inducing abortions in many Western countries since the late 1990s, while this use of Misoprostol is off-label.
Misoprostol alone is sometimes used for self-induced abortion in Latin American countries where legal abortion is not available, and by some immigrants from these countries in the United States who cannot afford a normal abortion.
Emergency contraception (the "morning after pill"), such as Plan B or the Yuzpe regimen, is also considered an abortifacient by those who hold that pregnancy begins at conception, as it may prevent in some cases the implantation of an already fertilized egg. The same concern is sometimes extended to regular birth control pills due to its thinning effect on the endometrium. Both American law and the medical community however make a firm distinction between contraception and abortifacients, and do not accept that emergency contraception is a form of abortion, nor do they accept that abortifacients are proper forms of contraception.
More about abortion can be found here (Wikipedia.com)
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