A new study has shown that the rate of women having abortions seems to be significantly higher in countries that do not allow the procedure. It also seems that at least 50% of abortions taking place globally are unsanitary and unsafe. Most of these are happening in countries which are just developing.
Experts were unable to pinpoint the exact reason for the lower number of abortions in developed countries but believe it could be a result of wide-spread access to a variety of birth control methods. This of course results in a lower amount of unwelcomed pregnancies.
Worldwide the rate of abortion remained quite the same during the years 2003 and 2008, at approximately 28 abortions per one thousand females between the ages of 15 and 44. The total number of abortions during this time frame was recorded and about 43.8 million. This information was released in the study which also shows the number of abortions has diminished since 1995.
There were about 47,000 abortion related deaths as a result of unsafe procedures in 2008. Additional 8.5 million women experienced severe medical problems as a result of abortions gone badly. Just about all the unsafe procedures were performed in underdeveloped countries which had very few resources in the way of contraception and family planning programs.
A senior researcher at The Guttmacher Institute, based out of the US stated that a typical abortion is actually, and should be a very safe and simply procedure. Additionally, the researcher, Gilda Sedgh claimed that the deaths and other complications could be easily avoided with proper medical care.
Sedgh’s colleagues surmised that the number of unsafe abortions went up from 44% in the year 1995 to forty nine percent in the year 2008, this being the last year statistics were made available during the study. Sedgh also made it very clear that to date it is very challenging to get a concise number for the amount of unsafe abortions being performed. For this reason the numbers are being estimated modestly.
Sources which were used included national surveys, official statistics and of course records from hospitals. In order to get the approximate number of unreported abortions, other less reliable sources were used. These sources included surveys given to women and assessments by experts in the field.
The study also concluded that abortion rates were the lowest in West European countries, recorded at about twelve in one thousand women, and highest in the East European counties, at about forty three in one thousand women. In North America the rate was recorded at approximately 19 in 1000 women. The study showed a distinct link between a higher rate of abortions in countries which had less liberal laws concerning them.
The authors of the study have defined the practice of unsafe abortion as any procedure being performed by unskilled and/or unlicensed physicians. Unfortunately, the study also concluded that many women in Africa were going to extreme measures to abort their unwanted babies, including using strong doses of medications, herbal remedies, and even using broken bottles.