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After reading a recent report by the National Center for Health Statistics about contraception use in the U.S., one thing really stood out to me: The responsibility for contraception still falls mainly on women. Another interesting bit: Only eight percent of women with three or more children use the pill, and women with multiple kids are more likely to be sterilized.
Information collected during in-person interviews of 7,300 women of childbearing age from 2006 to 2008 suggested that 62 percent of U.S. women age 15-44 are using some sort of birth control. Five decades after it was introduced, the birth control pill remains the most popular option with 10.7 million women of childbearing age using it. But surprisingly, female sterilization is a close second at 10.3 million. In fact, while just 16 percent of married women reported being on the pill, one in four said that they'd chosen tubal ligation.
Are women with three or more kids just too busy to remember a daily pill, or are they looking for a more reliable option? You be the judge.
Other forms of contraception like the vaginal ring, the skin patch, and the sponge or diaphragm just don't seem to be able to compete with the pill, though that old throwback, the IUD, is gaining again in popularity.
There's little mention here of male birth control. In 2002, the male condom and vasectomy were the third and fourth most popular birth control methods, behind the pill and female sterilization. Just under 10 percent of men utilized the vasectomy -- a far more risk-free procedure than female sterilization. Though some women have their tubes "tied" during c-section, many undergo the procedure as a separate operation.
Listen up, guys: If your wife has gone through three or more (or, in my opinion, any) deliveries, she shouldn't be the one going back under the knife for the sake of birth control. I'm just sayin'.
What's your method of birth control? Chime in below!
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