Birth Control...God's Greatest Gift for Women?

Ask any woman on birth control and I’m sure she would agree that birth control is one of the best inventions out there for us.

Yes there is the obvious reason why. But people who are not even sexually active love birth control just as much for its health benefits (studies show that it can reduce risks of cancer, ease cramps, clear one’s skin) and the magic ability to control your period.

Birth control was first introduced in 1960 and since then has “revolutionized contraception.” While there are so many options out there now for women for birth control from the pill to the patch to the ring to the shot, “almost half of all pregnancies are unintended” in the United States, according to the Center of Disease Control and Prevention.

What is the reason for this discrepancy?

One reason is insurance. According to an article in the New York Times, “nearly a third of women who start a new type of birth control stop within a year” because of changes in one’s insurance. Birth control isn’t cheap. It can range from $10 to $30 for a month’s supply, multiplying that by 12 months, comes out to be between $120 to $360 a month. While I can afford that, a lot of people can’t. Also, these prices can vary depending on one’s health insurance coverage or lack of coverage.

A second reason is religion. According to the journal Reproductive Health, researchers have proven a strong correlation between the teenage birth rate of a state to its level of religiosity. Their results show that “The more religious the state, the higher the rates of teen pregnancy.” One of their explanations for this finding is the lack of sex education, or sex-abstinence education. Regardless of how successful religious communities are in discouraging sexual intercourse, the problem is they are not educating teenagers about using contraception, and if anything discourage the use of contraception. According to the study: 
        “We conjecture that conservative religious communities in the U.S. are more successful in   
        discouraging use of contraception among their teen community members than in discouraging 
        sexual intercourse itself.”




Moral of the story: Birth control and other methods of contraception not only provide many health benefits but can help decrease the number of teenager pregnancies and unwanted pregnancies in general. However, to do so, the use of contraception needs to be supported from all communities, regardless of one’s religiosity, and taught in the classroom. And I think another thing we have to realize, is that it is never too early to start educating children on contraception. Below is an excerpt from a parenting blog on the New York Times:

A while ago I ordered some birth control for myself and my husband. When the box arrived, it included a freebie: a pack of 50 candy-colored condoms. I was about to throw them away, but after an internal debate that seemed at once to encompass every attitude, preconception, goal and belief I have about parenting, I took the bag and put it on the very top shelf of the cupboard in the kids’ bathroom.

A few months later, I heard a shriek of horror. I ran in to find my kids staring aghast at the bag of condoms.

I smiled shakily, “At some point in the very distant future, you’ll be having sex. And you’ll need protection.”

“God, Mom,” my daughter said, turning her back and stalking out of the room …. “That is so gross.”