Abortions raise the risk that a woman’s future babies will be premature or underweight, according to a Canadian medical study.
For women who have had more than one abortion, the increased risk of a having a baby with low birth weight is 72 percent, and the risk of a premature birth jumps to 93 percent. In addition, the researchers found that a woman’s number of abortions correlated with the risk of complications during labor.
The study consisted of a review of 37 studies of abortions from around the world between 1965 and 2001. The new study aimed to discover whether abortions are a significant factor in the birth of babies who are premature or underweight. Abortions are, in fact, already associated with increased risks of problems in future pregnancies. The risks are believed to be related to cervical damage, scar tissue, and infection. The Canadian study is an attempt to quantify those risks.
The research was carried out at the Department of Pediatrics at Mount Sinai Hospital and the University of Toronto, and the results were published in the “British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.” The study authors concluded that an abortion significantly increases the risks of having a baby in the future who is premature and/or underweight, and that each subsequent abortion increases the risks.
Lead author of the review, Dr. Prakesh Shah of Mount Sinai’s pediatrics department, told the Daily Mail, “When a woman comes for induced termination of pregnancy, she should be counseled about that risk. At least she will be able to make an informed choice.”
Abortion Fact: According to the National Right to Life organization, an estimated 1,206,200 abortions were done in 2005, and there have been more than 49,552,700 abortions since 1973.
