contraception

• contraception

  ways to prevent fertilisation
• common method is taking oral contraceptives e.g pill - contains hormones which prevent body producing hormone fsh (causes egg to mature)
• advantage of oral contraceptives

  • highly effective if taken correctly
• disadvantages of oral contraceptives

  • must be taken everyday
  • forgetting to take it - risk of pregnancy
  • certain contraceptive pills have risk of side effects e.g increased risk of breast cancer or blood clots - but risks are small
• another form of contraceptive is an implant, skin patch or injection - contains progesterone (stops egg maturing or being released)
• advantages of implants, skin patches or injections

  • more convenient than day pill
  • implants lasts 3 years
  • injection lasts 13 weeks
  • patch lasts 1 week
• disadvantages of implants, skin patches or injections

  • risk of side effects
  • invasive
• most forms of contraceptive do not protect against sexually transmitted diseases (stds) e.g hiv
• another form of contraceptive is barrier method e.g condom or diaphragm - prevents sperm reaching egg
• advantages of barrier methods

  • effective if used correctly
  • no side effects - don't use hormones
  • condoms reduce risk of stds
• disadvantages of barrier methods

  • can break or slip off
• condoms and diaphragms are more effective if used with spermicide gel - kills or disables sperm - reduces chance of fertilisation
• many women use intrauterine device (iud)/coil - prevents embryo implanting - some also release hormones to reduce chances of fertilisation
• advantages of iuds

  • highly effective
  • can prevent pregnancy for up to 10 years
  • very few side effects
• disadvantage of iuds

  • not protective against stds
• surgical forms of contraception (sterilisation) - prevents egg reaching uterus/prevents sperm leaving penis
• advantage of sterilisation

  • highly effective
• disadvantage of sterilisation

  • difficult to reverse
  • doesn't protect against stds
• another method is to abstain from sexual intercourse during time after ovulation
• advantage of abstaining from sexual intercourse

  • natural method
• disadvantages of abstaining from sexual intercourse

  • hard to tell when a woman has ovulated
  • doesn't protect from stds
• strong opinions about contraception - church teaches that all contraception is unethical apart from natural methods - others believe it's a persons' right to choose best method for them