Prominent in the news this week were breathtaking, high-definition images of babies in the womb, as MPs voted not to lower the upper time limit on abortions. The debate was made more poignant by these extraordinary pictures of foetuses, which were made possible by giant leaps in baby-scanning technology. Until recently, scans of unborn children were used solely by doctors to diagnose foetal abnormalities. But baby scanning is rapidly moving into the commercial sector, being billed as high-tech family entertainment. According to the sales pitches of growing numbers of non-diagnostic scanning packages advertised in baby magazines and on websites, these futuristic scans can help parents, friends and family “bond” with the unborn baby. The private scanning company www.beforethestork.co.uk claims on its website: “Ultrasound scans are believed to enable families to form an early affectionate bond to their unborn child.” With doting parents-to-be willing to pay up to £250 for images of their unborn children, baby scans have suddenly become big business. To view the full article, including comments from Dr Kevin Martin, President of BMUS, please click on the link below.