apps and gadgets for monitoring menstrual cycle They are very useful, but we must be careful with their use. And, according to a study recently published by four English scientists, people who use them as contraceptive method there may be more unwanted pregnancies and, with it, a higher likelihood of needing abortion.
In this study, the authors analyzed years of abortion center data. 2018 and 2023. Abortion figures varied, but above all they revealed clear changes in attitudes contraceptive method used patients. It is logical that many did not use them, which is why they became pregnant. However, others used contraceptives that, for one reason or another, were ineffective.
Any method of contraception may be ineffective. Even condoms and hormonal methods have very low error rate. Especially if they are used for other purposes. However, these two options will always be better options than abstinence during the fertile period. And in fact, finding out the exact period of a woman’s fertility is much more difficult than it seems. The figures from this study are clear evidence of this.
Amazing Research Data
In a study just published in BMJ Sexual and reproductive health data is displayed 33,500 women who required an abortion between January and June 2018 and another 55,000 that they did it in the same period, but in 2023.
The first thing that stands out is that while fewer abortions were requested in 2023 than in 2018, there were more women requested the second time around. However, this was not the most amazing thing. It was also observed that in 2018, about 19% and 3% of women respectively used hormonal birth control method or long-term implant it failed. The latter are also hormonal methods, but instead of being taken regularly, they are implanted, usually under the skin, and gradually release their contents.
Thus, we see that there was a significant proportion of women who They were trying to avoid pregnancy hormonal methods. There were also in 2023, but the percentages were much lower: 11% for conventional hormonal methods and 0.6% for implants.
On the other hand, in 2018, 56% of women said they did not use no contraceptive method and 0.4% reported that they resorted to some “natural” method. In 2023, this percentage was higher: almost 70% and 2.5%, respectively.
It is important to note that the data reported himself. Thus, it is possible that there is overlap between those who do not use any contraceptive methods and those who use natural methods. And in general, these natural methods basically involve doing nothing. They only monitor their cycle and, when they consider themselves fertile, They omit sexual relations.
Why is it not recommended to use a natural method of contraception?
The rise of natural methods may have become fashionable with the advent of menstrual cycle tracking apps and gadgets. They’ll tell you what your fertile window is so you know when you should boost your sexual relationship if you I’m looking for pregnancy. However, in the opposite case there may be many errors. Therefore, these apps are never recommended for this purpose.
The reason this method of contraception is not reliable is that the fertile window is more difficult to calculate than it seems. there is only one day throughout the entire menstrual cycle, during which the egg can be fertilized. This happens around the middle of the cycle, during ovulation. In a 28 day cycle this will be 14th.
For its part, sperm can survive longer in the female genital tract. Depending on conditions, they can withstand up to 5 days. This means that unprotected intercourse 5 days before ovulation can result in pregnancy. Since an egg lives 24 hours from the time it is released, we have one more day. Thus, the “fertility window” can last a long time. about a week.
Here’s what menstrual cycle tracking apps say. They indicate what this window will be, taking into account data from previous cycles. This is used to find out how long a cycle lasts as there are people who have cycles much longer or much shorter than 28 days. In fact, in a short cycle the fertile window may coincide with menstruation. Therefore, saying that it is impossible to get pregnant during menstruation is a mistake.
Now we must also take into account that there are factors such as stress or certain illnesses this may cause the cycle to lengthen or shorten beyond the average for that person in a given month. This may cause applications to fail to make their predictions.
Nowadays, there are devices such as some smart watches, bracelets and rings that measure body temperature have an even more rough idea of the menstrual cycle. Basal temperature varies during different phases of the menstrual cycle, so it can be a good indicator. But again, This is not an infallible indicator. For this reason, errors may be made in forecasts.
If all these mistakes are made while using the pregnancy search app, you will have to wait a maximum of a month to continue trying. But if it is used as a method of contraception, the result of a single mistake can be an unwanted pregnancy. Therefore, hormonal methods or condoms should not be abandoned, even if they are also used.
In addition to the contraceptive method
On the other hand, we must remember that the condom is the only method of contraception that also protects us from sexually transmitted infections. If you are about to have sex with someone who is not your regular partner, or you have not STI testingforget about apps and use a gummy bear. Pregnancy may be the least of your problems.
Source: Hiper Textual
