[Dracophoenix]

I'm aware that medicine hasn't discovered a bright line between what's healthy and what would likely cause fetal alcohol syndrome or premature infant death. While any lawyer worth his salt would attack the lack of substantive medical literature, judges and legislators have now and in the past invented bright line tests that, while not wholly accurate, are "good enough" to account for a general decision (although I don't agree with that kind of reasoning myself).

In my example, I could have also used tobacco in place of alcohol, but the point I wished to address is whether the health of an imminent child trumps the rights of a mother or vice versa. If one accepts the affirmative position, then a woman does not have a right to her own body. If we accept the negative position, then the child will become a long-term burden on the medical system at the expense of others.