"The Patch"

One of the most recent forms of birth control has been the birth control patch. This patch is a thin, beige square patch that sticks to your skin.
The way this works is very simple. The combination of the hormones progesterone and estrogen in the patch prevents ovulation (the release of an egg from the ovaries during a girl's monthly cycle). If an egg isn't released, a girl can't get pregnant because there's nothing for a guy's sperm to fertilize. The hormones in the patch also thicken the mucus produced in the cervix, making it difficult for sperm to enter and reach any eggs that may have been released. The hormones can also sometimes affect the lining of the uterus so that if the egg is fertilized it will have a hard time attaching to the wall of the uterus.
Like other birth control methods that use hormones, a girl uses the birth control patch based on her monthly menstrual cycle. She puts on the patch on the first day of her menstrual cycle. She will place the patch on her skin once a week for 3 weeks in a row. The patch should be applied to one of four areas: the abdomen, buttocks, upper arm, or upper torso. On the fourth week, no patch is worn, and a girl's period should start during this time.
There have been problems associated with the patch. One of them is blood clots. This is because estrogen, which appears in the pill as well, causes blood to coagulate in the veins. It seems though that the patch appears to cause more blood clots than the pill. According to epigee.org, this is the reason for this higher instance of blood clots "the birth control patch actually delivers higher amounts of estrogen directly to your bloodstream. The traditional pill is broken down in your intestinal tract before any hormones reach the bloodstream. By the time it is broken down, about 50% of the estrogen contained in the pill has been lost. However, because the patch delivers estrogen straight through the skin and into the bloodstream, users are actually receiving about 60% more estrogen with this form of birth control. As a result, their risks for blood clots increases."
So then comes the question, is it safe to use the patch? Even though the patch is FDA approved they recommend that women with concerns or risk factors for serious blood clots talk with their health care provider about contraceptive options.

Plan B

Everyone always has a plan a. Plan a is usually your ideal situation, smooth, easy and comfortable. Things will fall into place and you can go on contently with your life. However, we live in a world where plan a just doesn't work out sometimes. That is when plan b comes into place.

This plan a meaning safe sex. This plan b meaning emergency contraception. What is emergency contraception? "Emergency contraception is a method to prevent pregnancy in women who have had unprotected sex. It can be used following many different situations including rape, unplanned acts of intercourse, or when a birth control method fails. For example, if a condom breaks, a diaphragm slips out of place, or a woman forgets to take birth control pills. Emergency contraception medicine is not the same as the "abortion pill." A woman who knows she is pregnant takes the abortion pill with the intent to end an early pregnancy (usually 4 to 7 weeks after conception). Emergency contraception pills are taken after unprotected sex to prevent pregnancy from occurring. Unlike most types of birth control, which must be put in place or taken before intercourse, emergency contraception can be used up to 3 days after intercourse." (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/007014.htm)

There are several types of emergency contraception. The most popular, known as the morning after pill, is called Plan B. It is the only FDA approved emergency contraception. It is a two pill pack. You take the first pill and then follow with the second one twelve hours later. It is available over the counter for women aged 18 and over. The pill works by delaying ovulation of the egg or slow egg or sperm movement in the fallopian tubes, making it harder for the embryo to stick to the lining of the uterus. Plan B is 89% effective if taken within 72 hours of unprotected intercourse.

You shouldn't abuse Plan B and use it as a form of birth control. That is not what it is meant for, and if done that way, it becomes less effective. It is for emergencies only.

Did you know?

Did you know?

This short video, presented in class, is about the growing of technology through such a short period of time. It almost makes me feel technologically paranoid. In the video, it states that the top 10 jobs in 2010, did not even exist in 2004. I would be lying if I said I wasn't just alittle scared of all the new advanced technology to come. The internet has become a whole separate world, bigger than the world we actually live in. There are over 200 million registered users on myspace alone, and 1 in 8 married couples have met on the internet. We are entering an information revolution. Almost everything done nowadays is done with a computer. People use computers at work, in school, at home, it is a major part of peoples lives. I almost feel dependant on my computer, sometimes it can be an addiction. If I go a day without checking email/facebook, I crave it, it's actually pretty ridiculous.

When I first watched this video, I didn't think it was xenophobic. I think I was too distracted with all the techological advancements to see it. Then I watched the video again..oh about ten more times. The more I watched it, the more I started to see it. There is a constant comparison between the U.S. and other countries. It starts from the very beginning when they mention the fact about China soon being the country with the largest english speaking population, then about the intelligence rates in children here and in India. It also ends with the birth rates in the U.S., China and India. I almost feel as if it is some sort of competition. Almost as if it is saying "look at the other countries beating us, what does it mean?"

Birth Control

Birth Control. Ah yes, birth control.

This refers to condoms (male and female), "the pill", abstinence, IUD, "the shot", "the ring", diaphragm, natural family planning and withdrawal method. Let me know if I have forgotten any.

The first contraceptive history dates back to 200 AD. There was a greek gynecologist named Soranus who thought that women ovulated during menstruation. His suggestions were to smear pomegranate pulp, ginger, olive oil around the vagina to kill sperm. Also, jumping backwards 7 times after sex to dislodge sperm.

Ever wonder where the word condom originated from? According to Buzzle.com, it derives from the latin word Condus, which means a vessel or container. This word was probably chosen because it was first aimed to hold the semen and bacteria/and or viruses that are sexually transmitted. In 1880, latex condoms were first produced. As time went on, there was a double standard for condom use. Men were prescribed condoms to prevent themselves for disease for premarital sex while women could not get condoms to prevent pregnancy.
A man named Dr. Gregory Pincus developed the first oral contraceptive in the 1950s. The first birth control pill did not appear till 1960. "The first oral contraceptive contained 100 to 175 mcg of estrogen and as much as 10mg of progestin, significantly higher levels of both hormones than in today's pill. (35mcg of estrogen and .25mg norgestimate)"(http://imr.bsd.uchicago.edu) Later on in 1970, something called the "mini-pill" was introduced. It was an oral contraceptive containing only progestin. The mini pill worked by creating changes in the cervix and uterus that make it difficult for a sperm and egg to unite.

Test

I read the New York Times everyday.

I found this image on flickr. (http://flickr.com/photos/slimdandy/3183011251/)