STOCKHOLM, Sweden, March 15 (UPI) -- The number of abortions in Sweden has risen despite the popularity of the morning-after pill, says a leader of a midwives group.
Catharina Zatterstrom, deputy chairwoman of the Swedish Association of Midwives, said introduction of the pill 12 years ago had raised hopes the number of abortions would decline, The Local.se reported Friday.
However, abortion rates increased 20.9 per 1,000 women last year from 18.4 in 1997, she said.
In the meantime, more than twice as many morning-after pills were sold in 2012 than when the pill became available in 2001, Zatterstrom added.
"It's very strange and saddening," she said. "There's nothing wrong with the fact that the sales have increased, but it would be much better if we could find a functioning contraception."
The rise in abortions is caused mostly by Swedes' lackadaisical attitudes toward the use of contraceptives, said Ian Milsom, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Gothenburg University.
He said abortion rates in Sweden were higher than in many other countries.
"The problem area is the 20- to 24-year-old group, that's where the trend looks gloomiest," he said.
