Whole Truth About Contraception: A Guide to Safe and Effective Choices (Paperback)

This book is a detailed guide to the methods of birth control currently available, plus a brief review of new methods being developed. Each chapter describes a specific method and provides information to help you choose a contraceptive suited to you and your current situation. Chapters discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each contraceptive, safety concerns, general effectiveness, side effects, costs, and how to obtain and use it.

As you think about the birth control options available to you, remember no single method may be ideal or totally reliable. Furthermore, many contraceptives have some side effects and most require a certain amount of care in their use. To choose the right one for you, be thoughtful about the disadvantages as well as the advantages. If you are comfortable with your birth control choice, you are more likely to use it every time and to stick with it. If possible, the decision about what method to choose should be made with your spouse. As this guide demonstrates, it is much easier to use a contraceptive correctly when both of you are involved.

This guide includes up-to-date information on new products, such as the female condom and the non-latex male condom. Only birth control methods that are currently available or show every promise of being available soon are discussed.

The book also provides details about contraception and its relation to sexually transmitted diseases, with an emphasis on AIDS. Also offered is an expanded discussion of "emergency" contraception, designed for use after unprotected sex. Many of the methods discussed in this guide require a visit to a health practitioner as such at family planning services, independent clinics and hospitals.

Although clearly intended for someone planning to use a contraceptive method, this book is detailed enough to be useful to nurses and youth counselors interested in the subject. Whether you intend to have children or not, every newlywed couple owes it to themselves and their loved ones to read this book.

Reviewed by Azlan Adnan. Azlan is Managing Partner of Azlan & Koh Knowledge and Professional Management, an education and management consulting practice based in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysian Borneo. He holds a Master's degree in International Business and Management from the Westminster Business School in London.

This book is a detailed guide to the methods of birth control currently available, plus a brief review of new methods being developed. Each chapter describes a specific method and provides information to help you choose a contraceptive suited to you and your current situation. Chapters discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each contraceptive, safety concerns, general effectiveness, side effects, costs, and how to obtain and use it.

As you think about the birth control options available to you, remember no single method may be ideal or totally reliable. Furthermore, many contraceptives have some side effects and most require a certain amount of care in their use. To choose the right one for you, be thoughtful about the disadvantages as well as the advantages. If you are comfortable with your birth control choice, you are more likely to use it every time and to stick with it. If possible, the decision about what method to choose should be made with your spouse. As this guide demonstrates, it is much easier to use a contraceptive correctly when both of you are involved.

This guide includes up-to-date information on new products, such as the female condom and the non-latex male condom. Only birth control methods that are currently available or show every promise of being available soon are discussed.

The book also provides details about contraception and its relation to sexually transmitted diseases, with an emphasis on AIDS. Also offered is an expanded discussion of "emergency" contraception, designed for use after unprotected sex. Many of the methods discussed in this guide require a visit to a health practitioner as such at family planning services, independent clinics and hospitals.

Although clearly intended for someone planning to use a contraceptive method, this book is detailed enough to be useful to nurses and youth counselors interested in the subject. Whether you intend to have children or not, every newlywed couple owes it to themselves and their loved ones to read this book.

Reviewed by Azlan Adnan. Formerly Business Development Manager with KPMG, Azlan is currently Managing Partner of Azlan & Koh Knowledge and Professional Management Group, an education and management consulting practice based in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysian Borneo. He holds a Master's degree in International Business and Management from the Westminster Business School in London.