Abortions In US Seen To Have Dropped Dramatically Over the Decade

The United States of America experienced its biggest abortion rate drop during the Great Recession in the last decade.

According to government figures that were released Wednesday, the country experienced a 5 percent drop in abortion rates during the Great Recession, which is said to be the biggest drop in the decade. According to a report published in Medical Xpress, while researchers are still not clear about the reason behind this, they speculate it could be the better use of birth controls.

Researchers also state that during the hard economic times, people used birth controls more frequently as women felt they couldn't afford to get pregnant at that moment. "They are more careful about birth control," said Elizabeth Ananat, a Duke University assistant professor of public policy and economics, who has researched abortions.

Even though many states have now restricted access to abortions, researchers say these laws came into practice only a couple of years ago and have no role to play in this declined rate of abortions.

The year 2010 witnessed the lowest number of abortions since 1987. "Given that unintended pregnancy precedes nearly all abortions, efforts to reduce the incidence of abortion need to focus on helping women avoid pregnancies that they do not desire," the authors wrote.

"Providing women and men with the knowledge and resources necessary to make decisions about their sexual behavior and use of contraception can help them avoid unintended pregnancies," the report continues.

Many experts thought these findings rather fascinating, since given the economic conditions of that time, women should have opted for more abortions, but instead opted for the smarter way of not getting pregnant in the first place.  

John Santelli, a Columbia University professor of population and family health, said, "The economy seems to be having a fundamental effect on pregnancies, not abortions."