Women have too much faith in contraceptives

If you are on the pill, or use condoms, you can't get pregnant or can you? According to a new study, many women think that contraceptives are more effective than they actually are, which may place them at risk of an unwanted pregnancy.

Researchers, who published their findings in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, looked at 4,100 women who were trying to find the right contraceptives for them. Nearly half of women, 45 percent to be exact, overestimated the power of the birth control pill and condoms. And, the study subjects also had too much faith in other contraceptive methods, including the birth control patch, depo Provera, and NuvaRing.

Contraceptive implants and intrauterine devices (IUDs) are actually the birth control methods least likely to produce an unwanted pregnancy. Perhaps the fact that it is impossible to forget using them or otherwise make mistakes has something to do with that? Most women choose either the pill or condoms, but if you look at the new study, that choice may have to be accompanied by accepting the possibility they may get pregnant anyway. This is especially the case in woman who are "typical users" of the contraceptives which may mean forgetting a pill here and there, or putting the condom on halfway through intercourse.

Researchers noted that the choice of contraceptive often has something to do with the cost (IUDs may be really reliable, but they are also pretty pricey if you have to pay for them out of pocket!) as well as the possibility of unwanted side effects like weight gain, irregular menstrual bleeding, and others.What do you think of this study? If you use the pill or condoms, do you see yourself as a "typical user" who also makes mistakes? Has the birth control pill ever let you down? Whatever your contraceptive-related story, we would like to hear about it!