Women who undergo an abortion don’t seem to face a higher risk of mental health problems after having the procedure.

Some previous studies had found that abortion might negatively affect mental health. To investigate if abortion affects the mental health of women, Danish researchers followed all women having abortions in Denmark from 1995 through 2007. Each woman having a first-time, first-trimester-induced abortion was followed individually from nine months before the procedure to 12 months after. During this period, the researchers studied if the women had been admitted to a psychiatric hospital or had records of treatment at an outpatient clinic. In Denmark, abortions are both free and legal during the first trimester.


Fifteen out of 1,000 women had a first-time psychiatric episode during the first year after having a first-trimester-induced abortion. The most frequent reasons for psychiatric visits were neurotic or stress-related complaints. Some past studies may have included issues such as sadness or regret, which don’t necessary constitute a mental disorder.
Among women and girls who actually delivered a baby, about four in 1,000 had a first-time psychiatric episode before the baby and about seven afterward – an increase possibly related to postpartum depression.


The findings show that motherhood and parenting are decisions with lifelong implications and that individual women are in the best positions to decide when and if they are ready to give birth.






Keywords: Abortion and mental health,first trimester,psychiatric episode,postpartum depression,motherhood , parenting,give birth,mental disorder,neurotic, stress-related complaints