The Internet has given us greater access to information than ever before. Best of all, we can research personal topics right in the comfort of our own homes. One such subject is that of birth control. Choosing a method of birth control is a very personal decision. It's best to be as informed as possible before making a decision. Thanks to Internet, you can learn all you need to know about birth control online.
One of the most reliable, comprehensive sites to learn about birth control online is Planned Parenthood, plannedparenthood.org. Planned Parenthood offers unbiased information about everything from continuous abstinence to female condoms to vasectomies. It even has a special section on birth control options for teens and recommends the best choices for teens and the methods that should generally be avoided.
If you're not sure what you're looking for in a birth control, the best place to start is the birth control landing page. From there you can read an article that gives you an overview of current contraceptive choices, or you can scroll through a list of options. They are conveniently separated into permanent methods versus reversible methods. The reversible methods are further broken down into subcategories such as behavioral methods, over-the-counter barrier methods and prescription hormone methods. This makes the site easy to navigate. What's more, once you decide which birth control option is right for you, you can look up a Planned Parenthood location near you and make an appointment to get started.
Another informative, unbiased site to learn about birth control online is 4women.gov, which is run by the US government. In the FAQ guide to birth control, they compare the various methods of birth control, give efficacy statistics and provide links to find further information. The only complaint about this site is that all of the information is contained on one page, so instead of being able to skip just to the methods you're interested in, you need to read through all of the information.
If you're just looking for a quick overview of your options, you might consider going to The Cleveland Clinic Information Center, clevelandclinic.org, to learn about birth control online. Like the government site, this is also a single, long page that discusses the various methods of birth control. For each method, this site lays out what it is, how it is used, how you can get it, how effective it is and important facts you should know. Because each of the methods is explained using those same basic headers, they are relatively easy to compare.
A fourth site to learn about birth control online is Ortho Evra, orthoevra.com. This is a manufacturer of birth control methods, but they provide a comprehensive chart comparing the various methods available, their efficacies and links to find more information. What's nice about this site is that the information is in chart form, so you can easily scroll through to find the information you're looking for.
No matter what site you choose to learn about birth control online, be sure to check when it was last updated to see that you're getting the most accurate information available. Once you think you know which type of method you'd like to use, bring any information you've gathered with you to your doctor, so you can decide together which option is best for you and why.