Teen girls are not more likely to consider suicide just because their state bans abortion, contrary the claims of researchers.

“Adolescent Suicidality After State-Level Total Abortion Bans” gained expected media coverage from sympathetic outlets such as Newsweek and the 19th News. The paper, published in JAMA Network, says “total abortion bans were associated with a statistically significant 4.3-percentage point increase in suicidal ideation among female students.”

Researchers utilized data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Youth Risk Behavior Surveys to reach their conclusions.

One of the authors, Wendy Sheldon, spoke to Newsweek about what her study found.

“There are likely multiple contributors, and I think it may be difficult for many of us who grew up with federal abortion protections to fully understand how eliminating abortion access may affect young people’s mental health,” she said.

Sheldon then pumped up the idea that protections for innocent human life may be driving teen girls to consider killing themselves.

“At a time when there is already so much uncertainty about what lies ahead, losing the freedom to decide what to do about an unwanted pregnancy could feel especially devastating for young women and may exacerbate fears and uncertainties about their ability to control their own futures,” she suggested.

But professor Michael New, an expert on abortion polling and studies, took a different view.

He pointed out “there was no statistically significant increase in actual suicide attempts among teen girls who live in pro-life states.”

The study also doesn’t look at actual suicide data. It also is not even close to being comprehensive, since it only looks at five states with abortion prohibitions, but for only one year. About 12 states have significant protections for preborn babies.

“Finally, the researchers failed to consider if abortion bans had a larger impact on sexually active teenagers or on older teenagers — demographics that might be more affected by an abortion ban,” New wrote at National Review.

Suicide is a serious issue, but it could never justify the killing of innocent human beings. It would be immoral to legalize abortion on the theory that teen girls might be less likely to consider suicide. It would also be an ineffective approach, considering how having abortions can lead to higher incidences of depression and other mental health problems. The better approach would be to address the underlying anxiety and depression issues that would cause teen girls to consider suicide just because their states protect innocent human life.