...The Birth Control Pill: Providing Surprises In Life Allison Wang California Polytechnic University Pomona Professor Lord ANT 350 Research Paper Abstract The pharmaceutical field has overcome countless medical feats since the early times. While “the pill” itself was considered a brand new invention, the idea of creating a birth control pill was not. Since the old times primitive condoms were made from animal intestines and fish bladders. However, it wasn’t until after Margaret Sanger’s multiple convictions and persistent attitude, that a judge ended the Comstock era, providing Sanger with the opportunity to stress the importance of having birth control in th for of a pill to the public. In less than a decade after Sanger persuaded Pincus to begin working on the contraceptive, Pincus created a pill that tested to be 100 percent effective. However, in 1957, while the Food and Drug Adminsitration approved the pill, it was not approved as a contraceptive but rather as a treatment for women that experienced sever menstrual disorders. It was not until 1960 that the drug was actually approved as a contraceptive. Despite this, many controversies arose from the contraceptive leading to its many transformations. Because the original pill had many side effects that were largely ignored, a newer pill with a smaller dosage was created, coming with a decreased risk of developing ovarian cancer, pelvic inflammatory disease, and deficiency anemia in the users. Later on...
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...Birth Control Throughout history, the idea of whether birth control should be used has been a hot topic. Some believed it was harmful to the body while others thought it saved lives. Margaret Sanger, a woman who stood up for women’s rights, fought for birth control. She believed she could make a difference in the world and did what she could to accomplish it. Many people strongly believe that women should be able to have control over their own body. No one should be forced to do something with their body that they don’t agree with. They should stand up for what they believe in ordinarily stop being scared by societal norms. “Victoria Woodhull was perhaps one of the first people to preach the importance of ‘no means no’. No one – not your husband, boyfriend, or date – has the right to act against your wishes” ("10 Victoria...
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...Introduction: I picked the topic of Birth Control Technologies because I am very interested in seeing how things have changed over time whether positive or negative when it comes to birth control. I do believe the usage of birth control is important when it comes to helping control the growth of the population. What other purposes does it serve? How did it become such a politically driven issue? Government always feels the need to step in and control people’s lives but is it really necessary. It also has become evident that women are pressured into taking precautions when it comes to sex and reproduction. Whereas, men are not required to have the same responsibility even though several different methods of contraception have been created for them as well. So I plan to explore the history, significance, future, political implications and many other aspects of birth control. I. Module 1: Definition of the problem. Birth control is used in the prevention of pregnancy and assists with the timing of pregnancy when warranted. People have used birth control methods for thousands of years. Today, there are many safe and effective birth control methods available to women and men. However, birth control methods are not one-size-fits-all. A method that’s perfect for one woman may not be right for another. According to www.womenshealth.gov website there are options that one can choose from to fit their situation listed below: Types of Birth Control • Continuous abstinence means...
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...a checkered history due to how different governments and political leaders have tried to implement the theory. These failed eugenics attempts have had severe socio-political consequences on countries around the world. Within this paper, three eugenics-based policies will be addressed in greater detail. These policies are: birth control, race-based sterilization policies and genocide (on varying scales). Birth control is a relatively recent phenomenon — primarily entering the national agenda after the Industrial Revolution as more and more families left the countryside and moved into urban areas. Prior to this demographic shift, birth control had only been practiced by a handful of people and the methods that were utilized (such as abstinence and withdrawal) had a relatively high failure rate (A brief history of, 2014). Following the Industrial Revolution, birth control was introduced at different rates in different countries — driven by demographic differences, as well as each country's individual religious beliefs and preferences. Certain religions have been much more adamantly opposed to birth control than others. Interestingly, the United States was one of the slowest countries to embrace birth control. In fact, a law — the Comstock Act — was passed that criminalized the advertising and distribution of birth control. And despite the actions of Margaret Sanger, Planned Parenthood (and its forerunner, the American Birth Control League) and other birth control advocates, the...
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...Margaret Sanger Leader in Women's Health Vickie Doscher Hampton University Margaret Sanger Leader in Women's Health The early twentieth century was a turning point in American history-especially in regards to the acquisition of women’s rights. It was a time of grave social conflict and human suffering. As Margaret Sanger found out, women, especially those who were poor, had no choice regarding pregnancy. Margaret Sanger devoted her life to legalizing birth control and making it universally available for women. Born in 1879, Sanger came of age during the Comstock Act, a federal statute that criminalized contraceptives. Margaret Sanger believed that the only way to change the law was to break it. Starting in the 1910s, Sanger actively challenged federal and state Comstock laws to bring birth control information and contraceptive devices to women. Her fervent ambition was to find the perfect contraceptive to relieve women from the horrible strain of repeated, unwanted pregnancies. Sanger's commitment to birth control evolved from personal tragedy. One of eleven children born to a working class Irish Catholic family in Corning, New York, at age nineteen Margaret watched her mother die of tuberculosis. Just 50 years old, her mother had wasted away from the strain of multiple childbirths and miscarriages. “Although she was now spitting blood when she coughed we still expected her to live on forever. She had been ill for so long; this was just another attack among many” (The...
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...Paper Birth Control and Its importance for Women Rights Women for centuries have been subjugated to men, and it’s hard to believe but there was a time in history in this country when women didn’t have any rights. Women couldn’t speak in public without the permission of men and were only looked to for bearing children, while taking care of the home. Throughout history women have fought for their rights with movements like the suffrage and birth control movements. The birth control unlike the suffrage movement is still an ongoing battle, even though women have the right to contraception, but many women don’t have access to because of certain state’s government have laws limiting that access to birth control. By the government controlling women’s access to birth control they are controlling the liberty for women. Birth control has been a very controversial topic and taboo since the classical period. Before one can grasp why and how birth control and the use of birth control can be controversial, one will need to understand what birth control is and the history. First, birth control should be viewed as a woman’s basic right that goes hand in hand with her first amendment right, and without any interference from the government. The all encompassing question is what is birth control? Birth control is a practice, material, or device by which sexual intercourse can be rendered incapable of producing a pregnancy (Walker 161). While birth control through the centuries...
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...Birth control methods have had the roller coaster ride of the century from abstinence to the pill, but one aspect of its history that hasn’t changed is how moral views of the Christian church have played a pivotal role in its slow progression to its current state. Faith has been at the core of all issues of birth control, or lack thereof, for ages as a moral compass in which all action for or against civil changes were made and most importantly the specifications of gender roles. This moral compass has come to play in the birth control issue in many aspects as a deterrent to the growth of the movement, but ultimately was forced to adapt to change as more and more the movement grew. The change from people believing, based on the centuries old...
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...Planned Motherhood: Margaret Sanger and Her Fight for Birth Control Morgan Ledford History 1200 Tamia Haygood November 13, 2014 During the Progressive Era, the United States was changing and developing but social issues were often neglected. With the rise of factories and big business, populations in small compact areas were exceeding holding capacity and the quality of life was decreasing. Margaret Sanger, born in New York in 1876, knew from an early age the change that she wanted to make in America. Sanger desperately wished to rise in class and her current education level so she attended Claverack College after which she enrolled in a nursing program at White Plains Hospital. She worked as a visiting nurse in New York City in the 1910s until she began to challenge the Comstock Law and write and mail contraceptive information to women. Through creation of different committees, leagues and publications, Sanger was able to slowly push the idea of birth control into the public. In 1914, Margaret Sanger coined the term birth control and then printed it in the Woman Rebel journal. Sanger also opened up her own birth control clinic and fought for contraceptives until her death in 1966.1 Throughout the Progressive Era, Margaret Sanger started the foundation for the Birth Control Movement and actively advocated for the passage and approval of birth control in the United States. Women in the Progressive Era had only two choices, “passive and usually pleasure less submission...
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...substances were used in ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome, as well as in medieval Europe and early colonial America, with varying degrees of success and safety.”("Birth Control Movement.", 2)All throughout history...
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...Women’s Role (1865-Present) Kimberly Burrows HIS 204 Joseph Scahill February 2, 2013 Women’s Role (1865-Present) Throughout history, women have suffered fewer rights then men and are discriminated against because of their gender. Historically, a woman’s main role was to tend to the home isolated in the domestic “bubble” and to raise their children while their husbands were away at work. In this paper, I will describe the historical significance of this issue from 1865 to the present. I will explain the historical developments that presented new opportunities for women in society. I will discuss the main individuals that were involved in these struggles. To conclude, I will analyze ways in which it contributed to an “ending of isolation” while assessing the challenges involved. Even today, women still face discrimination based on their gender. However, the role of women has changed significantly which has created a lasting and ongoing increase of women's rights. The woman’s role presents a historical significance from 1865 to today for many reasons. Prior to the Civil War, women were perceived as the weaker sex and were considered intellectually inferior to men. Their freedom was limited and they had fewer rights than men. Women were expected to marry, care for their home, cook, make clothing and raise their children. According to Manning, M. J. (2005), “Women were viewed as wives and mothers, whose economic rights were mainly to be supported by a male breadwinner and...
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...The Evolution of Birth Control Rarely is there a subject that is considered as divisive as contraception. While we tend to think of birth control as a fairly modern development, it is an idea that has been around for thousands upon thousands of years and has been documented through both written word and various forms of art. The methods have ranged from spiritual and ritualistic to practical and scientific. Because of the length of a woman’s fertile years (about 40 years) the ability to control one’s ability to have children has affected millions of men and women and therefore is an issue that transcends time and place. The methods have ranged from spiritual and ritualistic to practical and scientific. The Ancient Egyptians are the first known to use a contraceptive known as a pessary. The pessary is a concoction made of crocodile dung, sodium carbonate, and honey all missed together, fermented, and inserted into the vagina as a spermicide and blockade to sperm. Other methods included the insertion of the other foods such as sour milk, acacia gum, dates, and the complete removal of the ovaries all together. The Ancient Greeks took a similar approach to birth control but instead of food they used oils such as olive oil, lead ointment, frankincense oil, cedar oil, and an ancient plant called silphium (a large cousin to the fennel plant which, because of such high demand, was extinct by the fourth century A.D.). While barriers such as condoms were documented as far back as about...
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...Birth control is used by women all over the world, however it is a way for women to prevent pregnancy. As of now there is no birth control for men, but scientists want to come up with one that will be used by both men and women. Birth Control was established in 1960, and was known to be the most important invention of the 20th century. There are all sorts of different methods of birth control, such as “the pill”. Women take the pill everyday by mouth to prevent pregnancy, when taken correctly it is up to 99.9% effective. By taking the birth control pill it may prevent pregnancy, but it does not protect you from sexually transmitted diseases, such as HIV. In order to start the pill you need a doctor or a nurse practitioner to give you a prescription. They will start by asking you questions about your health, and family history which may include a pelvic ultrasound. When starting the pill the doctor or nurse will explain when the right time is to begin the pill, and what will happen if you miss taking the pill. Depending on what birth control pill...
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...Fundamentals Pearl Webster September 10 , 2014 APA Paper In this paper I will provide information about Margaret Sanger who was an influential person in nursing history. She grew up understand the perils of childbirth on a women and wanted to change the situation. While trying to change what she new was going to be her life, she continued and changed that for all women. In her life she created a movement that empowered women and gave women their autonomy. She gave women power over their own bodies and changed public’s views on contraceptives. She educated women on how contraceptives would change the lives of women and give them the freedom to choose. She had many obstacles during her campaign, but she created what we now know as Planned Parenthood and the International Planned Parenthood Federation that help women all over the world. Her accomplishments for a woman from the 19th century are radically huge and changed the world’s views on women’s autonomy. Margaret Sanger was born on September 14, 1879, born in Corning, New York. She was one of 11 children and her parents struggled to provide for all of them. The author of this article, Todd E had made sure he mentioned that her mother died prematurely and Margaret was deeply affected by this. She blames the fact that her mother carried and gave birth to so many children attributed to her death along with being poverty stricken and not being able to get the proper nutrition and provisions. To escape the life that...
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...children throughout history. For instance, while children were often regarded as gifts, women worried about dying during pregnancy and childbirth and the responsibilities of childcare. Thus, men and women developed various types of contraceptive. Before the twentieth century, condoms and suppositories were the leading contraceptives, and in the 1930s, a book instructing couples about the rhythm method was popular. However, such methods were not always effective, and men and women wanted a way other than abstinence to limit the amount of children in their family. Thus, the birth control pill was developed in the 1950s and approved by the FDA for contraceptive use in 1960. Although birth control is a controversial topic, millions of women use oral contraceptive, and its effects on society are...
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... Prof. Cousin ENGL 1613-8am class 13 October 2014 Birth Control Pills Birth control pills are used widely by women all over the world. On average, about 150 million women use birth control worldwide. Only five out of one hundred women each year who use this method are likely to get pregnant. In the United States, 62% of women use a form of contraception, and about 10.5 million of those women use birth control pills. Many women also use birth control pills to control and reduce cramping during the menstrual cycle, prevent acne, and develop stronger bones. Unfortunately, what many women do not realize is, is that birth control pills can also be very harmful to a women’s body. Birth control should be taken out of the general public to prevent women from becoming unhealthy. Birth control should be removed from public consumption because it can cause different kinds of cancer, blood clots, gall bladder disease, benign liver tumors, strokes, and high blood pressure. First off, birth control pills can cause a variety of cancers. Cancers such as breast cancer and cervical cancer may develop from taking the pill. Breast cancer is a major cancer that can develop from taking birth control pills. According to one article, “a 1996 analysis of epidemiologic data from more than 50 states worldwide by the Collaborative Group on Hormonal Factors in Breast Cancer found that women who were current or recent users of birth control pills had a slightly higher risk of developing breast...
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