The history surrounding birth control is fascinating because it has two different areas of growth, social acceptance and technological advances. The idea of birth control can be seen in primitive times, such as East African tribes who would most commonly use coitus interruptus or magical methods by which a cord was tied and worn to keep a woman infertile. They also used various unknown plant concoctions made by the medicine man to prevent conception (Himes 6-7). Other birth control methods mentioned were physical plugs in the vagina, with rags or grass, as well as regulation of intercourse (Himes 10, 16). Further out in time, the Egyptians still employed old concepts with new materials, such a using crocodile feces to pug the vagina, which
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With increasing knowledge of reproduction there still was quite a lack of contraception use due to religious beliefs, societal views, and national bans of which can be seen easily in the case of the United States (). The idea of birth control brings up the subject of sex and historically that is not seen as a decent topic, especially in areas dominated by Puritan beliefs, which is where we see a lot of political inhibition of contraceptives (Wilcox 42). Initiating in 1870, there was an active control of contraceptive information, such as bans passed by Comstock, and in the early 1900s medicine and law still admonished birth control (Reed 34, 37). The birth control movement arose around 1912 and activist Margaret Sanger made huge contributions to the success of the reform while coining the term “birth control” (Daniels et al. 2; Reed 67; Baker 52). Sanger was a woman who saw the unwanted pregnancies and abortions happening and was looking for a change, which she believed was answered with availability of medical contraceptives for women (Reed 67-69). She worked to remove bans and negative concepts affecting birth control and founded various ways to make it obtainable, with one of her biggest roles in beginning an organization that would one day become Planned Parenthood (Baker 7, 260, 307; Reed
With increasing knowledge of reproduction there still was quite a lack of contraception use due to religious beliefs, societal views, and national bans of which can be seen easily in the case of the United States (). The idea of birth control brings up the subject of sex and historically that is not seen as a decent topic, especially in areas dominated by Puritan beliefs, which is where we see a lot of political inhibition of contraceptives (Wilcox 42). Initiating in 1870, there was an active control of contraceptive information, such as bans passed by Comstock, and in the early 1900s medicine and law still admonished birth control (Reed 34, 37). The birth control movement arose around 1912 and activist Margaret Sanger made huge contributions to the success of the reform while coining the term “birth control” (Daniels et al. 2; Reed 67; Baker 52). Sanger was a woman who saw the unwanted pregnancies and abortions happening and was looking for a change, which she believed was answered with availability of medical contraceptives for women (Reed 67-69). She worked to remove bans and negative concepts affecting birth control and founded various ways to make it obtainable, with one of her biggest roles in beginning an organization that would one day become Planned Parenthood (Baker 7, 260, 307; Reed