What types of family planning do exist

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Once you have decided to use family planning, you must choose a method. To make a good decision you must first learn about the different methods, and their advantages and disadvantages.

There are 5 main types of family planning methods:

• Barrier methods, which prevent pregnancy by keeping the sperm from reaching the egg.
• Hormonal methods, which prevent the woman’s ovary from releasing an egg, make it harder for the sperm to reach the egg, and keep the lining of the womb from supporting a pregnancy.
• IUDs, which prevent the man’s sperm from fertilizing the woman’s egg.
• Natural methods, which help a woman know when she is fertile, so that she can avoid having sex at that time.
• Permanent methods. These are operations which make it impossible for a man or a woman to have any children.

Sources

• Burns, A. A., Niemann, S., Lovich, R., Maxwell, J., & Shapiro, K. (2014). Where women have no doctor: A health guide for women. Hesperian Foundation.
• Audiopedia ID: en020407