Birth control
Birth control [r]: forms of pregnancy prevention that include barrier contraceptives (condoms, cervical caps, etc.), birth control pills or patches (i.e, hormonal contraceptives), and IUD's (intrauterine devices) [e]
Birth control refers to ways of limiting or avoiding pregnancy. It has multiple related sub-topics.
- Contraception (medical methods): forms of pregnancy prevention that include barrier contraceptives (condoms, cervical caps, etc.), birth control pills or patches (i.e, hormonal contraceptives), and IUD's (intrauterine devices) [e]
- Sterilization (surgical): Add brief definition or description
- Desexing operation: the spaying and neutering of animals by surgery, leaving a male or female animal unable to reproduce and with lowered sex hormone levels [e]
- Natural family planning: the least reliable form of birth control, based on abstinence during the days of the month when the female is ovulating, whereby one in five women will likely become pregnant if sexually active and using only this method [e]
- Christian views on contraception: there is wide variation, with the Catholic Church completely rejecting it, and Protestant groups running the gamut between complete disapproval and complete acceptance, and Quakers having no collective opinion at all [e]
This article is a general discussion of birth control in human society. For an article about the medical means of contraception see Contraception (medical methods), for surgical means of contraception see Sterilization (surgical) and for natural methods see Natural Family Planning or Christian views on contraception. For spaying and neutering in animals see Desexing operations .
This article is about the alternative medical means of contraception, for a general discussion of birth control in human society, see contraception; for surgical means of contraception, see sterilization (surgical); and for methods using medications and medical devices, see contraception (medical methods).