Morning After Pills

Colorado bill would mandate “morning-after” pill

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 18:56:42 +0000

Colorado’s legislature is considering a proposed law that would mandate that all hospitals in the state give the abortifacient “morning-after” pill to rape victims. There would be no provision for religious objections. Read more at the source: Catholic World News

The FDA Considers Morning After Pill

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 18:50:05 +0000

Women’s rights groups seeking easier access to emergency contraception are pressuring U.S. regulators as they try to decide whether to approve a nonprescription “morning after” pill. The Food and Drug Administration last year denied a request by Barr Pharmaceuticals to sell the contraceptive, called Plan B, over the counter. That sparked a furor over whether the decision was based on scientific evidence or political considerations.

Why is it Still Not Readily Available?

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 18:11:39 +0000

With studies like the one above, it’s hard to imagine that the morning after pill isn’t readily available. In fact, in some states, the pill isn’t even available for rape victims that come into hospitals for an emergency rape kit.

The main reason that the morning after pill isn’t yet available without a prescription from your doctor is because of pro-life supporters. A harsh, but true statement.

The morning after pill prevents the egg from implanting itself in the uterine wall. There is a small chance that the egg will even be fertilized, but if it is fertilized, it can be considered that the fertilized egg is now an unborn child.

A lot of religious groups also speak out against the morning after pill because they don’t believe in hormonal contraception or any form of contraception at all.
Despite the studies showing that having the MAP available without prescription won’t encourage promiscuity or unprotected sex, there are still strong believers saying that it will encourage those things.

All of those points combined create a strong case against preventing the MAP from being available. It’s a fine line that is hard to debate.
If it’s not available to young women from pharmacies or walk-in clinics, it should at least be available in hospitals for rape victims for obvious reasons.

The Rate of MAP Usage

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 18:10:28 +0000

Roughly 24 percent of the women in the first group ended up using the Morning After Pill during the time of the study. That sounds like a large number, but 21 percent of the women in the last group that didn’t have the pill readily available ended up getting a prescription for it and using it.

With only a 3 percent difference between the groups, it’s hard to conclude that having the morning after pill available will increase the rate at which it is used.

Sexually Transmitted Disease Rate

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 18:09:16 +0000

Each group reported the same percentage of sexually transmitted diseases, which could conclude that the availability of the MAP wouldn’t effect the promiscuity in women, since the group which had the MAP available weren’t more sexually active than the group that required a prescription.

12 percent of women in each group had contracted a sexually transmitted disease, showing that having the MAP available didn’t increase the rate of sexually transmitted disease.

The Study Group

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 18:08:29 +0000

A study group of 2,100 women between the ages of 15 and 24 was divided into three groups. One group was given the MAP to take home in case they were to need it, another group was given the ability to pick up the MAP without a prescription, and the last group were told that they needed a prescription to get it.

Why Would We Keep the MAP Out of Reach?

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 18:07:57 +0000

There are many points against having the MAP available without a prescription: it promotes promiscuity, encourages unprotected sex, and will increase sexually transmitted disease rates in younger women… We might assume.

One could say that having something available that would prevent pregnancy after engaging in unprotected sex would encourage younger women to have unprotected sex, because there’s no real risk of pregnancy if the pill is at hand.

For starters, the Morning After Pill is only 80% effective and so it isn’t a reliable birth control method. A study on the morning after pill proved that it doesn’t encourage unprotected sex at all.

The morning after pill and society

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 18:07:12 +0000

The morning after pill aides in preventing conception in women that have had unprotected sex or whose contraceptive method failed during intercourse. Unfortunately, this emergency contraception is not readily available without a prescription as there are many groups and many arguments fighting to keep it as out of reach as possible.

Disadvantages of the Morning After Pill

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 18:02:32 +0000

Unlike other contraceptives, the morning after pill will not protect you from sexually transmitted diseases and it is definitely not recommended for prolonged use. It is called an emergency contraception method because it is only intended to be used in emergencies.

It is always a good idea to look into a type of contraception, such as the birth control pill or the new Evra patch. Of course, it is always recommended that you use a condom alongside a hormonal contraceptive in order to reduce your risk of contracting an STD.

Some people are convinced that the morning after pill is increasing promiscuity and unprotected sex in younger women, but the morning after pill is not openly available to everyone - in most places, a prescription is required to get the morning after pill.

After using the morning after pill once and feeling the nausea it induces, many people would be discouraged from using the pill even if it were readily available.

As its nickname would entail, the morning after pill is great for emergency situations, but is definitely not a good contraceptive method and so many doctors would suggest a hormonal contraceptive plan, which would prevent the need for the morning after pill, when used properly.

RU-486 Versus the Morning After Pill

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 17:58:05 +0000

There really isn’t much comparison between RU-486 and the morning after pill, but they are compared in arguments against making the morning after pill readily available to women that need it.

RU-486 works by dislodging the fertilized egg from the uterine lining after the woman has become pregnant. This will only work within the first 9 weeks of pregnancy.

How Does it Work?

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 17:57:25 +0000

The woman has to take the first pill immediately after receiving it and then take the second pill twelve hours after the first one in order to maintain the high hormone levels in her body.

As we already discussed, the morning after pill prevents the egg, fertilized or not fertilized, from embedding itself in the uterine lining, thus it prevents pregnancy, rather than terminated it as some groups would argue.

Because of the way that the morning after pill works, it is only 80% affective. Those who choose to continue with the pregnancy once the pill has failed risk carrying a damaged fetus. Others would choose to use RU-486, the abortion pill.

Morning After Pill Side Effects

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 17:56:52 +0000

Since the morning after pill contains high amounts of female hormones, the pill can cause a number of small side effects.

Nausea
Vomiting
Headaches
Irregular vaginal bleeding
Heavy Menstruation

What is it Meant For?

Administrator — Tue, 01 Mar 2005 17:53:45 +0000

The Morning After Pill is provided to women in order to prevent their egg from implanting itself inside of the uterine wall. If the egg cannot embed itself in the wall of the uterus, the woman cannot become pregnant.

The pill is meant for women who have had unprotected sex or whose contraceptive method has failed. The pill can only be taken within 72 hours of intercourse. Other emergency contraceptives can be taken up to 120 hours after intercourse, which is one of the main reasons why the morning after pill is becoming less popular.
Containing high amounts of estrogen and progesterone, the morning after pill is thought to be a more potent type of the birth control pill.