Expert: Marina - 1/2/2006

Question
my boyfriend and i want to go on some type of birth control but there are so many out there now its very hard for me to chose i really hope you can help me thanks a bucnch marina  

Answer
Generally speaking there are two types of birth control. Hormonal and non-hormonal.

You should not use hormonal birth control containing estrogen if you:

- Are predisposed to develop blood clots.
- Have liver disease
- Have migraines
- Have a family history of breast cancer

Now, if you choose a hormonal contraceptive containing estrogen you should know that there are some serious and rare side effects, such as blood clotting. The estrogen also increases the chance of developing breast cancer.

Except for maybe the copper IUD hormonal contraceptives are generally considered more effective in preventing pregnancy than non-hormonal contraceptives.

However, non-hormonal contraceptives usually have fewer and less serious side effects.

There are some methods that need to be repeated every day, such as the pill/minipill or charting when practicing the fertility awareness method. Some methods need to be used every time having intercourse, such as the diaphragm, cervical cap, sponge or condom.
Some methods are used only weekly or monthly, such as the Ortho Evra patch (weekly) or NuvaRing, the vaginal ring (monthly).
And finally some methods are changed every three to five years, such as the copper IUD and the hormonal IUD.

You can read more about each of those methods at: http://www.plannedparenthood.org/pp2/portal/files/portal/medicalinfo/birthcontro...

So now, if you have any further questions about any method I will be glad to answer them :-)

Marina