SPRINGFIELD, IL, July 27 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Women who undergo abortions are at greater risk for mental health problems in subsequent years, according to a new study presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Society (APS) held this June in Miami Beach, Florida. Meanwhile, another new study presented at the APS conference by researchers from the University at Albany in New York found that teens who had children were as well or better adjusted than teens who did not have children.
The first study examined the medical records of women who had undergone abortions for up to six years after the procedure and found that such women had significantly higher mental health claims than women who had given birth. Women who had abortions were more than twice as likely to have two to nine treatments for mental health as women who carried to term.
Dr. David Reardon, co-author of the first study and director of the Elliot Institute, said that the study avoided many problems that have plagued other post-abortion studies in the past, such as small sample sizes and a limited time frame. “Most other studies have only followed women for a few months at most,” Reardon said, “however, the few long-term studies that have been done show that many women’s problems don’t start cropping up until at least a year or so after the abortion, often when they reach the expected due date of the child or the anniversary of the abortion itself.” Dr. Reardon concluded: “Giving birth to a child is a naturally maturing experience. By contrast, abortion increases the risk of subsequent psychological problems, including a six fold higher risk of substance abuse as reported in one of our previous studies.”