Birth Control

Birth Control is defined as various ways used to prevent pregnancy from occurring. Birth Control has been a concern for humans for thousands of years. The first contraception devices were mechanical barriers in the vagina that prevented the male sperm from fertilizing the female egg. Other methods of birth control that were used in the vagina were sea sponges, mixtures of crocodile dung and honey, quinine, rock salt and alum.

Birth Control was of interest for a long time, but women did not worry to much about it because child death rates were so high. They felt they needed to have many children just for a few to survive. In the early 1800's death rates began to drop and people began to show concern for controlling births. Early efforts to develop birth control met with resistance from religious leaders and other groups. In 1873, the U.S. Congress passed the Comstock Law, which regulated public access to birth-control devices and information for the next 60 years. This prohibition, which made it illegal to distribute any device, medicine or information designed to prevent conception, applied even to doctors.

During the early 1900's, Margaret Sanger started the birth control movement in the United States.

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The first dose should be taken within 72 hours of unprotected intercourse, and the second dose, 12 hours later. Their introduction in the late 1950's revolutionized birth control. The capsules constantly release small amounts of hormone that prevent the release of eggs and thicken cervical mucus to keep sperm from joining the egg. She and her followers were frequently jailed but were also able to change many laws. This ruling by the court changed the Comstock Law. But in the United States 42 million women of reproductive age, or 7 in 10, are sexually active and do not want to become pregnant. The other type of emergency contraception is the insertion of an IUD will prevent pregnancy up to five days after intercourse.

Another barrier device is the Diaphragm and Cervical Cap used by women. When used correctly they are 97% effective.

There are several chemical methods of birth control on the market. In the male, sterilization is accomplished by severing the two vas deferens.

Depo-Provera is an even newer method of birth control. In the woman this is done by severing and sealing off the Fallopian tubes. Its effectiveness depends on user motivation and on accurately predicting the times when the woman is ovulating.

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