Family planning

With Dr. Faosat Aragbaiye
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The World Health Organization definition of family planning is this: “Family Planning allows individuals and couples to anticipate and attain their desired number of children and the spacing and timing of their births; it is achieved through use of contraceptive methods and treatment of involuntary infertility.

Family planning enables women who wish to limit the size of their families to do so. Evidence suggests that women who have more than 4 children are at increased risk of maternal mortality. By reducing rates of unintended pregnancies, family planning also reduces the need for unsafe abortion.

Methods of Family Planning

Contraception methods include:

• Long –acting reversible contraception, such as the implant or intra uterine device
• Hormonal contraception, such as pill or the Depo Provera injection
• Barrier methods, such as condoms
• Emergency contraception- emergency contraceptive pill or a copper IUD.
• Fertility awareness
• Permanent contraception, such as vasectomy and tubal ligation.

Benefits of family planning/ contraception

Promotion of family planning-and ensuring access to preferred methods for women and couples-is essential to securing the well-being and autonomy of women, while supporting the health and development of communities.

• Preventing pregnancy- related health risks in women

Family planning allows spacing of pregnancies and can delay pregnancies in young women with health risks and death from early childbearing. It prevents unintended pregnancies, including those of older women who faced increased risks related to pregnancy. Family planning enables women/couple who wish to limit the size of their families to do so.

• Reducing infant mortality

Family planning can prevent closely spaced and ill-timed pregnancies and births, which contribute to the world’s highest infant mortality rates. Infants of mothers who die as a result of giving birth also have a greater risk of death and poor health.

• Helping to prevent HIV/AIDS

Family planning reduces the risk of unintended pregnancies among women living with HIV, resulting in infected babies and orphans. In addition, male and female condoms provide dual protection against unintended pregnancies and against STIs including HIV

• Empowering people and enhancing education

Family planning enables people to make informed choices about their sexual and reproductive health. Family planning represents an opportunity for women to pursue additional education and participate in public life, including paid employment in non-family organizations. Additionally, having smaller families allows parents to invest more on each child. Children with fewer siblings tend to stay in school longer than those with many siblings.

• Reducing adolescent pregnancies

Pregnant adolescents are more likely to have preterm or low birth weigh babies. Babies born to adolescents have higher rates of neonatal mortality. Many adolescent girls who become pregnant have to leave school.

• Slowing population growth

Family planning is key to slowing unsustainable population growth and the resulting negative impacts on the economy, environment, and national and regional development efforts.

Obstacles to family planning

There are many reasons why women do not use contraceptives. These reasons include ;

• logistical problems,
• scientific and religious concerns,
• limited access to health clinics,
• lack of education and knowledge
• Opposition by partners, families or communities
• Inability to control their fertility beyond basic behaviour involving contraception.

Common side effects of family planning

• bleeding between periods
• breast tenderness
• nausea and vomiting
• dizziness
• gut disturbances
• weight gain
• mood changes
• visual problems

Goals of family planning

Most goals are linked to family planning. It will be impossible to end poverty and hunger (goals 1 and 2), ensure quality education for all (goal 4), promote sustained economic growth (goal 8) without ensuring that every woman has access to quality, rights-based family planning services.

Male family planning

At the moment, the only contraceptive methods available to men are;

• Condoms- a barrier form of contraception that stops sperm from reaching and fertilising an egg.
• Vasectomy- a minor, usually permanent, surgical procedure that stops sperm from reaching the semen ejaculated from the penis

Other birth control in men includes abstinence and withdrawal.