ARE PEOPLE WHO CAN'T COUNT REALLY GOING TO DO ALL THIS STUFF?:

Perfect timing: Can natural family planning really be as effective as the pill? New research suggests that it is, says Sarah Ebner - once you have learned the ropes (Sarah Ebner, February 27, 2007, The Guardian)

Good news has emerged this month for those who want an effective method of contraception that does not involve hormones, injections or intrauterine devices. New research, published in the journal Human Reproduction, has found that the sympto-thermal method (STM) of family planning is just as effective as the pill. STM uses two indicators - body temperature and changes in cervical mucus - to identify the most fertile phase of a woman's menstrual cycle. "This puts contraception under a woman's control," says Toni Belfield of the Family Planning Association. "It's easy to learn, it can enhance a relationship, and it's easy to stop if a woman decides she does want to become pregnant." [...]

Professor Petra Frank-Hermann, from the University of Heidelberg, led the new research. "For a contraceptive method to be rated as highly as the hormonal pill, there should be less than one pregnancy per 100 women per year when the method is used correctly," she says. "The pregnancy rate for women who correctly used the STM method in our study was 0.4%, which can be interpreted as one pregnancy occurring per 250 women per year. Therefore, we maintain that the effectiveness of STM is comparable to the effectiveness of modern contraceptive methods such as oral contraceptives."

Of course, natural family planning is nothing new, and has often been used by those who oppose contraception on religious grounds. But the so-called "rhythm method" - which simply involved counting the days of the menstrual cycle - has long caused despair in family planning circles.

"It went out with the ark," says Belfield.

In other words, they object to it because of its religious overtones, but throw in a little pointless science and everything's copacetic.

Posted by Orrin Judd at February 27, 2007 7:32 AM