100 babies aborted in Britain by women not wanting multiple births

Over 100 unborn babies were aborted in Britain in 2010 by women who were pregnant with multiple foetuses but wanted to give birth to fewer children, government statistics say.

The multiple pregnancies have been attributed to the in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment, but experts said the women opted for abortion because of health concerns, the Daily Mail reported.

The statistics from the department of health revealed that 59 women aborted at least one foetus while giving birth to another baby in 2006. The number of women rose to 85 by 2010.

Of the 85 women, 51 reduced their pregnancy from twins to a single baby.u00a0There were 20 women who reduced triplets to twins and nine abortions to take a pregnancy from triplets to a single child.

Separate figures released by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority said around one third of such abortions carried out in 2009 involved pregnancies that were a result of IVF treatment.

The health department said three quarters of the selective abortions were made on medical grounds. In multiple pregnancies, some babies are at risk of being premature.

The Christian Medical Fellowship condemned the practice. Chief executive of the group, Peter Saunders, said parents unwilling to have twins should not have multiple embryos implanted.

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