Contraception

Birth control, also known as contraception and fertility control, is a method or device used to prevent pregnancy.

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Contraceptive Patch

The oral contraceptive pill was used widely because of its high efficacy. However, poor patient compliance inevitably led to higher-than-ideal pregnancy rates, as users often forgot to take the pill at the right time, to take it every day, or had gastrointestinal conditions which interfered with its digestion and absorption.

The Male Contraceptive Pill: is it possible?

What are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Contraceptive Implants?

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Contraceptive Vaginal Ring

Do Contraceptive Injections Affect Bones?

How Does the Progestogen-only Pill Work?

Natural Family Planning: an Overview

Natural Family Planning: Advantages and Disadvantages

Contraception and STIs

Contraception in Over 50s

Long-Acting Reversible Contraception (LARC) Types

Female Sterilization

See more featured articles »

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Progestogen-Only Pill (POP)

IUD: Advantages and Disadvantages

IUS: Advantages and Disadvantages

Intrauterine Device (IUD) and Intrauterine System (IUS) Differences

How Does the Contraceptive Vaginal Ring Work?

How Does the Contraceptive Implant Work?

How is the Contraceptive Implant Put in and Taken Out?

How Effective are Different Types of Contraception?

How to insert a diaphragm, cap or vaginal ring

How to Use the Patch

What is the Contraceptive Patch?

Types of Contraception

Types of Combined Birth Control Pills

Male Condom versus Female Condom

How Does The Combined Pill Work?

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Combined Pill

Emergency Contraception

Does Breastfeeding Act as a Contraceptive?

Condoms for Oral and Anal Sex

Condoms - Advantages and Disadvantages

How Effective are Condoms?

Combined Pill FAQs

Blood Clot Risk and the Oral Contraceptive Pill

The Effects of Continuous Contraceptive Pill Taking

Latest Contraception News and Research

Novel long-acting contraceptive implant can be delivered through tiny needles

Mass General Brigham and MIT investigators have developed a long-acting contraceptive implant that can be delivered through tiny needles to minimize patient discomfort and increase the likelihood of medication use.

24 Mar 2025

New MIT method promises less painful drug injections with tiny crystals

MIT engineers have devised a new way to deliver certain drugs in higher doses with less pain, by injecting them as a suspension of tiny crystals.

24 Mar 2025

TikTok influencers promote cycle syncing, but where’s the evidence?

Researchers analyzed 100 top TikTok videos on menstrual cycle syncing, finding that most lacked scientific credibility, with only 4% citing research and 30% providing creator credentials.

18 Mar 2025

Teen births linked to lower infant birth weight

At a time when the number of teens having babies in the Mountain State remains higher than the national average, maternal and child health researchers at West Virginia University found these infants have a lower birth weight and are smaller for their gestational age compared to those born to adults.

10 Mar 2025

This International Women’s Day, Meet the Scientist Changing Women’s Health

Prof. Dr. Inge Herrmann discusses her innovative work in healthcare, focusing on a reversible hydrogel implant that could transform gynecological treatments.

4 Mar 2025

Researchers uncover key biological mechanism that prevents sperm-egg fusion

A Yale-led research team has uncovered how a naturally occurring biological mechanism found in mammals is able to prevent sperm cells from interacting with an egg, preventing fertilization.

3 Mar 2025

Trump froze out project 2025 in his campaign. Now its blueprint is his health care playbook.

Few voters likely expected President Donald Trump in the first weeks of his administration to slash billions of dollars from the nation's premier federal cancer research agency.

24 Feb 2025

Understanding the impact of weight loss medications on female reproductive health

In recent months, the efficacy of contraception for people taking weight loss medications has been questioned, as several women claim to have gotten pregnant despite using oral contraceptives.

21 Feb 2025

Study finds varying cardiovascular risks associated with different hormonal contraceptives

Certain hormonal contraceptives are associated with a higher stroke and heart attack risk, finds a large study from Denmark in The BMJ today that draws on prescription records to give more precise estimates for different products than previous studies.

13 Feb 2025

Survey shows increased use of fertility apps after Dobbs decision

The use of fertility-tracking technology increased in some states after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade despite warnings that reproduction-related data might not be secure, a new study has found.

10 Feb 2025

Poor positioning of menstrual cup linked to kidney complications

A poorly positioned menstrual cup to capture monthly blood flow may lead to more serious complications than leakage alone, warn doctors in the journal BMJ Case Reports, after treating a young woman with uterohydronephrosis-a swollen kidney caused by blocked urine flow into the bladder.

10 Feb 2025

Most insurance covers IUDs. Hers cost more than $14,000.

During her annual OB-GYN visit, Callie Anderson asked about getting off the birth control pill.

31 Jan 2025

Telehealth companies boost ad spending while taking on more complex medicine

Shannon Sharpe was having one of those 15-minutes-of-internet-infamy moments. Social media blew up in September after the retired Denver Broncos tight end — accidentally, he later said — broadcast some of his intimate activities online.

30 Jan 2025

Study explores cancer risks of hormonal contraceptives

Many women worry hormonal contraceptives have dangerous side-effects including increased cancer risk. But this perception is often out of proportion with the actual risks.

15 Jan 2025

Study reveals decline in hormonal contraceptive use and increase in fertility awareness methods

There has been a shift away from the use of more reliable hormonal methods of contraception to less reliable fertility awareness methods among women requesting abortion in England and Wales over the past 5 years, reveals research published online in the journal BMJ Sexual & Reproductive Health.

13 Jan 2025

Study finds an increase in the number of U.S. young adults seeking permanent contraception

A new study from the George Washington University found a significant increase in the number of U.S. young adults seeking permanent contraception, specifically tubal sterilization and vasectomy, following the Supreme Court's June 2022 decision which overturned Roe v. Wade.

7 Jan 2025