BALANCE_FEBRUARY_2020 - 34

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SHARING THE LO

Georgia Lockstone discovers how contraceptive conversations can
help men be involved witth the decisions surrounding birth control
see how women end up taking on the
responsibility. However, by involving men more
in conversations about contraception, and
schooling them on side-effects, transitioning
from condoms to other methods can become
more of a mutual decision.
LADIES WANT THE LOWDOWN
Putting aside the amount of ovary-related
admin involved in preventing pregnancy - time
off for doctors' appointments, or lunch breaks
queueing in the pharmacy - the growing
concern surrounding contraceptive side-effects
is enough to make women think twice before
supporting a new form of birth control.
This, and her own adolescent experiences of
being on the pill, inspired businesswoman
Alice Pelton to create The Lowdown: the
world's first peer to peer review website for
methods of birth control. It's a space where
women can share their personal experience
with any type or brand of contraception. The
website then crunches this data supplied by real
women, and makes common trends available.
"I wanted to build something that helps
other women avoid the trial-and-error approach
to contraception that so many of us have had to

ALICE PELTON
Founder of the first
contraceptive review
platform, The Lowdown

endure," Alice says. "I was fed up with women's
complaints about side-effects being minimised."
Agreeing that women are more keen to know
the intricacies of contraception, Alice adds,
"People are finally waking up to the fact that it is
not good enough for women's physical and
mental health to suffer the way it does."
Initiatives such as The Lowdown are proving
effective in helping women feel more informed
about contraceptive choices. But with a 98 per
cent of female audience, it's clear that these
sorts of discussions are still taking place in
spaces where males aren't present.
Getting men involved is vital in helping with
the responsibility of birth control. With the
male pill having passed human safety tests, the
next decade could see a real shift in how
contraceptive duties are allocated.
the lowdown.com

A TRICKY PILL TO SWALLOW

Alice Pelton argues that making information about contraceptive side-effects more readily available is crucial, for men and women

Oral contraceptives
* 39% of women who visited NHS Sexual
and Reproductive Health Services (SRH)
in 2018/2019 opted for some form of pill
* The Lowdown data shows 44% of
combined pill-users reporting improved skin
* 54% on the mini-pill noted an increase in
spots, compared to 36% on the combined
Alice says: "Both can cause negative
changes in mood, loss of sex drive, breast
tenderness, headaches and increased
vaginal discharge in around half of women."

34

The implant
* The most common form of long-acting
reversible contraceptive (LARC), it was the
main method of birth control for 17% of
women visiting SRH services in 2018/19
* Can last up to three years
* Sitting near the bottom on The
Lowdown's satisfaction ratings, its most
reported side-effects are similar to the pill
Alice says: "61% of users reported a
negative impact on mood - making it the
worst-performing method in this area."

The hormonal IUS and copper IUD
* Fitted for 18% of visitors to SRH in
2018/19, these have seen a massive
increase in popularity in recent years
* The Lowdown users report womb cramps
and increased instances of thrush and
vaginal discharge for both devices
Alice says: "The IUS is the highest rated
and stops the periods of 55% of women.
In contrast, 75% of IUD users report heavier
periods. However, we don't see any major
reports of mood or sex drive changes."

WORDS Georgia Lockstone SOURCES *Ons.gov.uk, **guardian.com

T

eenagers are the UK's most prolific
condom users. Thanks to initiatives like
the "Come Correct" C-Card scheme, the
prophylactic still remains the most accessible
form of contraception on the market. With teen
pregnancy rates in the UK down by more than
60 per cent since 2007*, rooting for the rubber
is clearly an initiative that's paying off.
Unfortunately this love affair with the square
foil is often short-lived with "It just doesn't feel
as good" and "It ruins the mood" often cited as
common complaints. Essentially the stabilisers
of shagging, it appears that condoms are seen by
many as beginners' equipment before
graduating to a relationship and the "big
leagues" of female contraception.
But discussions are growing around the
emotional and physical impact that hormonal
contraception can have. A Danish study of more
than a million women and adolescent girls
found that those on the combined pill were 23%
more likely to be prescribed an antidepressant.
Prescription rates for the once much-loved pill
are now in steady decline. With contraception
choices relatively limited for men - currently
consisting of either slipping on a skin, or the
more drastic solution of the snip - it's easy to
http://www.lowdown.com http://www.guardian.com http://Ons.gov.uk
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