Feminists and other pro-abortion advocates are not happy about the film “The Yellow Handkerchief.” The movie came just a little too close to the truth on the topic of miscarriage and abortion. The “controversial” scene is the one in which the lead character (played by actor William Hurt) responds negatively to the news that his girlfriend had just miscarried their child because of a past elective abortion.
To quote one disgusted film reviewer: “A scene of particular discomfort in the film is the miscarriage and William Hurt’s reaction–are we to believe that an abortion rules out a healthy delivery of a child? Or are we to think that women’s prior choices direct karma on the planet and not men’s?” (comments section)
Is there a connection between elective abortion and the increased risk of future miscarriage for desired pregnancies? Abortion may not “rule out the delivery of a healthy child,” but it appears that elective abortion may well increase the odds that a woman may miscarry.
Many physician commentators prefer to skirt around the issue spinning the information and casting the shadow of doubt on existing research that does draw a link between the two.
“A few studies have found a general increased risk after one elective pregnancy termination, but most find increased risk of miscarriage only in women who have had multiple induced abortions…. Some researchers have speculated that if there is an increased risk, the risk is likely to come not from the abortion but from other lifestyle factors that might be more common in women who have had an elective abortion.”
Yet there is enough research that women considering an abortion should be informed of that risk—along with a host of other complications related to abortion. Pro-abortion advocates may bluster about the audacity of William Hurt’s character to even broach the subject, let alone react in the way that he did; but the producers of the film did women a huge favor by shining a spotlight on yet another ugly facet of abortion.
RESEARCH
Sun, Yuelian, Yan Che, Ersheng Gao, Jørn Olsen, and Weijin Zhou, “Induced abortion and risk of subsequent miscarriage.” International Journal of Epidemiology 2003. Accessed 10 Oct 2008.
Virk, Jasveer, Jun Zhang, and Jorn Olsen, “Medical Abortion and the Risk of Subsequent Adverse Pregnancy Outcome.” New England Journal of Medicine Aug 2007. Accessed 10 Oct 2008.
Zou, Y., J. Luo, Y.F. Xiao, Y.J. Fan, and R. Luo, “Study on the influence of medical abortion and surgical abortion on subsequent pregnancy.” Sichuan Da Xue Xue Bao Yi Xue Ban. Jul 2004. Accessed 10 Oct 2008.
Gan, C., Y. Zou, S. Wu, Y. Li, and Q. Liu, “The influence of medical abortion compared with surgical abortion on subsequent pregnancy outcome.” In J. Gynaecol. Obstet. Jun 2008. Accessed 10 Oct 2008.
Raatikainen, Kaisa, Nonna Heiskanen, and Seppo Heinonen, “Induced Abortion: Not an Independent Risk Factor for Pregnancy Outcome, But a Challenge for Health Counseling.” Annals of Epidemiology 2006. Accessed 10 Oct 2008.