Baby’s heart begins to beat as early as 16 days after conception, study finds

A new study shows that a baby’s first heartbeat may occur as early as 16 days after conception, rather than the three weeks previously thought. The study is being considered a potentially vital breakthrough for treating congenital heart disease since researchers will be able to understand the initiation of the heart’s function in the developing baby.

According to the University of Oxford, where the study was conducted:

Researchers hail this finding as crucial; twelve babies a day in the UK are born with congenital heart disease, and such knowledge of heart development could help medical professionals both treat these babies, as well as prevent heart attacks later in life.

The University of Oxford reports:

The implications of this study for the pro-life movement are profound. Most women have not yet confirmed a pregnancy at just 16 days after conception, and this finding further shows that even early abortions stop a beating heart. The entire study is available here, and it details the methods the researchers used to pinpoint the developing fetal heartbeat, which included “adding fluorescent markers to calcium molecules within the mouse embryo, the team was able to see at exactly which point in time the calcium tells our heart muscle cells to contract and then become coordinated enough to produce a heartbeat.”

The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) at the University of Oxford, is the latest in a stream of evidence which shows that life unequivocally begins early in fetal development, weeks and even months before abortion is regulated, even in the most restrictive states.

The scientific nonprofit, The Endowment for Human Development has produced a video showing a baby’s heart beating at only 4.5 weeks after fertilization (which is 6.5 weeks according to LMP dating). EHD partnered with National Geographic to make the award-winning documentary, “The Biology of Prenatal Development.”