Teen Girls' Health

Birth Control Briefing

Birth Control Menu continued...

Pros:

• Relatively cheap
• Easy to get
• Can reduce the chance of pregnancy and STIs

Cons:

• Difficult and awkward to use
• More expensive than male condoms
• It makes noise!

Spermicides
Sounds like pesticides, right? Same idea—spermicides kill sperm. Most contain the chemical nonoxynol-9. You apply them to your vagina in various ways: foams, gels, films, or suppositories/inserts. Spermicides must be used in conjunction with condoms—just using spermicide alone won’t protect you from STIs and provides only some protection against pregnancy.

Pros:

• When used with condoms, very effective at contraception and reducing STIs
• Cheap
• Easily available
• No prescription needed

Cons:

• Nonoxynol-9 can irritate the vagina.
• There’s no guarantee that all sperm will be blocked or killed with nonoxynol-9 and condoms—and it only takes ONE little sperm to get you pregnant.
• Some studies suggest nonoxynol-9 can increase the chances of getting HIV due to irritation of the vagina.