Abortion Increases Abuse Rates Among Mothers, Study Finds
A new report is raising eyebrows after it showed that women who had an abortion are more likely to abuse their children than women who had not lost a pregnancy.
The new study was conducted by the Elliot Institute, a post-abortion research institute, in conjunction with Bowling Green State University. The study found that women who had and abortion have an increased chance of abusing their children.
The findings were published in the medical journal Acta Paediatrica and stated that women who had an abortion are about two and a half times more likely to physically abuse their other children.
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The research, led by Priscilla Coleman of Bowling Green, analyzed data from a survey of 518 low-income women in Baltimore who were receiving financial aid under a program designed to help families with dependent children who were 12 years or younger.
The data was divided into two parts - women who had experienced a failed pregnancy due to either an involuntary termination, miscarriage, and voluntary termination, abortion - and looked at rates of child abuse and neglect among both groups.
They found that women who experienced a miscarriage or stillbirth were still more likely to physically abuse their children than parents who had not suffered such an incident, but were much less likely to physically abuse their children than women who opted to abort their child voluntarily.
The authors suggested that "emotional difficulties and unresolved grief responses" resulting from a terminated fetus negatively impacted a women's mental health and led to unhealthy parenting responses.
Pro-life advocates contend that the study is proof those women who suffer a loss during pregnancy, whether intentional or not, need access to abortion counseling as a result of post-abortion trauma.
"The common perception seems to be that abortion solves the immediate problem of a crisis pregnancy and that therefore it must be a positive thing for women," David Reardon, Elliot Institute director, said in a statement.
"However, more and more studies such as this one show that abortion can have a severe and lasting impact on women's lives, shaping their futures and the futures of their families for years to come."
