Abstract
Modern oral contraceptives provide women with pregnancy protection that is effective and safe; they also provide numerous noncontraceptive health benefits. However, many women are not aware of the health benefits provided by pregnancy prevention and they harbor significant concerns about the safety of birth control pills. The birth control pill is an extraordinarily important preventive health medication, which (as part of other family planning developments) was recognized as one of the ten most important public health achievements in the 20th Century. However, as good as it is, the pill may not provide what it is that women really want – not to have to worry about pregnancy at all.
Financial & competing interests disclosure
Anita L Nelson has received grants, research funding and honoraria from Bayer, Merck, Pfizer and Teva; she is also on the speakers bureau of these companies. Anita L Nelson is a consultant for, and on the advisory board of, Bayer, Merck and Teva. The author has no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.
No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.