Mental Health

Legitimate Rape Doesn't Result in Pregnancy? Huh, Todd Akin?

By Staff Reporter | Update Date: Aug 22, 2012 09:20 AM EDT

Someone in the United States is sexually assaulted every two minutes and on average, more than 205,000 people, over age 12, are sexually assaulted each year, according to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN). 

It is reported that "among adult women an estimated 32,101 pregnancies result from rape each year"  and in the U.S., 10,000-15,000 abortions occur among women whose pregnancies are a result of reported rape or incest.

But, apparently, Representative Todd Akin, the Republican Senate nominee from Missouri, has an entirely different view. In defending his argument against against abortion, Akin appeared to think there are different kinds of rapes: legitimate and illegitimate. 

"It seems to me, from what I understand from doctors, that's really rare," Akin said of pregnancies from rape. "If it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down. But let's assume that maybe that didn't work or something: I think there should be some punishment, but the punishment ought to be of the rapist, and not attacking the child."

Akin's comments sent shockwaves to voters and angered members of both sides of the aisle. 

President Obama called the remarks "offensive" and presidential Republican nominee Mitt Romney immediately disagreed with Akin.

"Governor Romney and Congressman Ryan disagree with Mr. Akin's statement," the campaign said in a statement to the press. "A Romney-Ryan administration would not oppose abortion in instances of rape."

"When a viable sperm penetrates a viable egg inside a woman's reproductive tract, the result is a fertilized egg that can then implant in the uterus," Business Insider reported. "That fact of life is consistent regardless of how that sperm and egg met up, including whether or not the sperm was ejaculated during rape."

"A rape is a rape, and a woman has the same physical and emotional consequences whether she's raped by a stranger in a dark alley or someone she's known for five years," Melisa Holmes, an ob-gyn and founder of Girlology, an organization that promotes healthy sexuality and communication in families, told LiveScience. "That's one of those misperceptions that gets perpetuated and unfortunately affects women in a bad way - 'Were you really raped, or were you at fault for part of it?'"

Past research has concluded that rape-related pregnancy occurs with significant frequency is a cause of many unwanted pregnancies, and is closely linked with family and domestic violence.

So there you have it Akin: You can indeed get pregnant whether you are raped or have unprotected se with someone you're crazy about.

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