LONDON — Abortion does not increase a woman’s chance of developing mental-health problems, according to a British health agency’s review of dozens of studies worldwide over 20 years.
Among women with unwanted pregnancies, those who had abortions were no more likely to suffer from problems including anxiety or depression than women who gave birth, the analysis by the U.K.’s National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health found.
The research offers “reassuring news” that abortion does not cause mental-health problems but raises a warning that officials must address the problem of unwanted pregnancy, said Dr. Tim Kendall, the center’s director.
The report is likely to be met by skepticism by those opposed to the practice and believe that terminating a pregnancy can trigger depression or other mental illnesses.
Kendall said mental-health problems seemed to be linked specifically to unwanted pregnancies rather than abortion.
About 11 percent to 12 percent of women in general suffer from mental-health issues such as anxiety or depression, but among women with unwanted pregnancies that figure rises to about one-third, he said. For women who later had an abortion, there did not appear to be any further increase in their rate of mental-health problems.
“We should be looking at what it is about the unwanted pregnancy stage that is so problematic,” he said. “We need to try to get those women help sooner so they’re not put at greater risk.”
Kendall and colleagues reviewed 44 studies conducted worldwide from 1990 to 2011 from sources including national health systems and insurance databases. Included was data on several million women with unwanted pregnancies.
They concluded the best predictor of whether women would have a psychiatric problem after an abortion was whether they had mental-health issues before getting pregnant.
The review was paid for by the U.K.’s department of health.
