快猫短视频

A WOMAN鈥檚 decision to have an abortion may be influenced by seasonal
depression. Italian researchers have discovered an annual peak in abortion rates
that matches that of female suicides. They suggest the same factors that push
women to commit suicide might also make them more vulnerable to pressure to
abort a pregnancy.

A host of factors can influence the decision to end a pregnancy. But previous
studies have shown that women who seek abortions already have a higher rate of
reactive depression and suicidal thoughts. 快猫短视频s have known for a while
that there are strong seasonal trends in depression and suicide, so Angelo
Cagnacci and Annibale Volpe at the University of Modena wanted to see if this
pattern was reflected in the abortion rate.

They studied statistics from Italian women who were dating between 1995 and
1998. To try to rule out any seasonal effect of conception on the abortion rate,
they charted the ratio of abortions to pregnancies, rather than the absolute
number of abortions, for each month of the year. They found that abortion rates
varied over the year, peaking in May. The rate of female suicides followed a
similar pattern, with the peak appearing in June, a trend that is also true of
male suicides.

鈥淭he almost complete similarity of the seasonal rhythm of female suicides and
that of voluntary abortion furnishes valid support for a strong relationship
between the two,鈥� say Cagnacci and Volpe. But they found no evidence that
abortion was the cause of the rise in suicides.

鈥淭his is an interesting paper,鈥� says Anne Furedi of the British Pregnancy
Advisory Service. But she adds that there could be a number of other
explanations for the annual peak. The team is now seeing whether improved
psychological support can help reduce the number of abortions.