IT MAKES no difference to women’s mental health rates whether they choose to have abortions or decide to continue with unwanted pregnancies, a major review of the issue has found.
The systematic review, carried out by the National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health at the Royal College of Psychiatrists in London, examined all relevant research published between 1990 and 2011.
It reached three main conclusions:
* Having an unwanted pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of mental health problems. However, the rates of mental health problems for women with an unwanted pregnancy are the same, whether they have an abortion or give birth;
* The most reliable predictor of post-abortion mental health problems is having a history of mental health problems. This means women who have had mental health problems before an abortion are at greater risk of them after an abortion;
* Some other factors may be associated with increased rates of post-abortion mental health problems, such as a woman having a negative attitude towards abortions in general, being under pressure from her partner to have an abortion or experiencing other stressful life events.
In 2008, the Royal College of Psychiatrists issued a position statement saying the evidence on abortion and mental health was imperfect and conflicting, which led to a decision to commission the latest research.
Dr Roch Cantwell, a consultant perinatal psychiatrist and chair of the study’s steering group, said: “Our review shows that abortion is not associated with an increase in mental health problems. Women who are carrying an unwanted pregnancy should be reassured that current evidence shows they are no more likely to experience mental health problems if they decide to have an abortion than if they decide to give birth.”
Commenting on the findings, Prof Patricia Casey, professor of adult psychiatry at University College Dublin said: “This report is saying that abortion and the birth of a child of an unwanted pregnancy are both associated with mental health problems. Women may be misled into believing that aborting an unwanted pregnancy will prevent them from developing a mental health problem. This is not the finding of this review.”
A woman’s risk of suffering disorders such as anxiety or depression is estimated to be about 11-12 per cent.
The researchers said this rate was about three times higher in women with unwanted pregnancies.
Some 4,402 abortions were performed in Britain in 2010 on women who said they were living in the Republic.