The abortion myth many women still believe

November 23, 2017 10:47 AM

There were plenty of other misconceptions about fertility, according to the survey’s findings.

Abortion is a touchy subject, and, given that it’s somewhat taboo to talk about it, women can be confused about what is and isn’t true when it come to terminating a pregnancy.

A new survey from Celmatix makes that super clear. The survey asked more than 1,000 women between the ages of 25 and 33 various questions about fertility and family planning, including abortion, and the results were eye-opening.

More than 30 percent of women said they think terminating a pregnancy can impact future fertility. About 25 percent of women also said they think using Plan B could impact their ability to have kids in the future.

Women’s health expert Jennifer Wider, M.D., says she's a little surprised by the findings, even though there's a lot of misinformation out there. That said, she points out that having an abortion will not impact your future fertility. "If performed in a safe, clean setting with a qualified health care provider, there is no scientific evidence supporting the claim that a medical or surgical abortion will cause infertility," she says. There is some evidence that having multiple abortions may raise your risk of having abnormal placenta implantation in future pregnancies, she says, but that's a complication—not something that actually impacts your ability to conceive and have a healthy child.

As for using Plan B, "taking the morning-after pill will not affect your ability to get pregnant in the future," Wider says.

There were plenty of other misconceptions about fertility, according to the survey’s findings. Many women thought that mental health issues like stress, depression, and anxiety could impact their ability to conceive, but that hasn’t been proven. About 35 percent of women also incorrectly thought that using hormonal birth control pills would affect their fertility, and plenty of others listed using an IUD and having multiple sex partners as increasing their risk of fertility problems—none of which is true.

Nearly 83 percent of women say they rely on websites, including WebMD and Google search results for information about their reproductive health.

Baby-making is on the brain for the women surveyed, at least for those in relationships. More than 80 percent of those women reported thinking about their future plans for having kids several times a month, with 32 percent of married women and 26 percent of women in a serious relationship thinking about it several times a week.

Also worth noting: More than 55 percent of women say they’re somewhat or very concerned about their ability to have kids one day. Hopefully clearing up the abortion myth will put some of their minds at ease.