Ian Gentles in the NP seems to argue that banning abortion reduces maternal mortality. It is a mix of lies and bullshit. First he makes an apparently valid point about the likelihood of preterm births in post-abortion women, then suddenly shifts to maternal mortality and commends Poland and Ireland on their stats. The abortion-premature-cerebral palsy argument may hold some validity, though I'd like to review the literature on the topic.
Where Gentles bullshits us is in his argument in favour of banning abortion to decrease maternal and infant mortality. This is his passage:
Why has Poland made such strides in improving both maternal and infant health? [...]. The only change that could have produced such a dramatic improvement is the documented decline in the induced abortion rate.
Since 1989, Poland has virtually banned induced abortion. [...]. There is little evidence of a widespread resort to illegal abortion, nor have significant numbers of Polish women gone to other countries seeking abortions.
Interestingly, the only other European country where abortion is illegal -- Ireland -- also boasts very low maternal mortality. By comparison, countries where abortion is completely legal -- the United States and Poland's immediate neighbours, Russia and Hungary -- have much higher maternal and infant death rates.
This is utter hen-brained tosh with an agenda. Among the most active abortion restrictors in 2005 maternal mortality per 100,000 was 16 in Chile, 290 in Guatemala, 170 in El Salvador, 77 in Argentina. Ireland had 1, Australia has 4 and Poland 8.
Those who allow abortion posted the following in 2005: Nepal - 830, Guyana - 470, Sweden - 3, Kazakhstan - 140, Slovakia - 6, Italy - 3, Hungary - 6, et cetera.
Infant mortality rate is the same (~6.8) in Poland, Slovakia and Hungary, so Gentles is lying. Slovakia has an abortion incidence (2006, per 1000 women) of 11.7, Poland 0.0 and Hungary 23.4.
Three neighbours. The one that bans abortion has no improvement in infant mortality and the highest maternal mortality of the three (8 vs 6).
Why does a conservative paper allow this rubbish while complaining about the climate change non-science? Where did that data come from? Where is the correlation, let alone causation? Where is the logic? Where is your brain?
This kind of idiocy makes my blood boil! It's the quality of healthcare that matters, stupid!
As for my sources, here:
http://data.un.org/Data.aspx?d=GenderStat&f=inID%3A12
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:AbortionLawsMap-NoLegend.png
http://www.childinfo.org/maternal_mortality_countrydata.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_infant_mortality_rate
Update: yes, it is old (Feb 5th). But it's so crap I had to say something.
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