Wayne State University

Some Health Conditions Derivative of

Sexual Attitudes and Behavior in the United States

The Interconnection of Contraception, Promiscuity, Sexually Transmitted Diseases and Abortion

Student Name: John Conricode

Course Name: Introduction to Epidemiology

Course Code: CM 7240

Instructor: Lee R. Kallenbach, PhD

Due Date: October 25, 2005

 A “militant, antichild view” has swept some cultures: children are seen as the cause of problems, and

contraception and abortion are promoted as remedies.1 Indeed, contraception and induced abortion represent

merely alternative means of achieving a particular desired aggregate level of fertility in a population. 2 In the

United States, the fertility rate has steadily declined since 1800. In 1800 the fertility rate was approximately 7

children per woman per life, in 1900 approximately 4 children per woman per life, and in 2000 approximately 2

children per woman per life.3 Since 1973, abortion - “the deliberate and direct killing, by whatever means it is

carried out, of a human being in the initial phase of his or her existence” 4 - has annihilated, in the United States,

43 million innocent lives.5 Of note “it is not that contraception causes abortion; rather, both are caused by the

perversion of autonomy -- taking freedom and using it to stop rather than to welcome life”.6 The war against

children has also resulted in a great deal of collateral damage. Divorce, promiscuity, sexually transmitted

diseases, and violence against women, are among the many conditions - in addition to abortion itself - arising

out of this war.7 And particularly tragic is the damage inflicted on young people.

Tragically, the promotion of birth control to teenagers has the unintended consequence of encouraging teen sex.8

The incidence of sexual intercourse among Michigan high school seniors is reported at 48% of high school

seniors having sexual intercourse in a 3 month period in 2001.9 Teenage premarital sexual intercourse has

become increasingly common over recent decades: the prevalence of women age 15-19 in metropolitan areas

ever having premarital sex was 29% of women age 15-19 in metropolitan areas in 1970, 42% of women age 15-

19 in metropolitan areas in 1980, and 52% of women age 15-19 in metropolitan areas in 1988.10 The proportion

of Michigan’s chlamydia cases in 2002 who were people age 15-19 was 1 in 3, and the proportion of Michigan’s

gonorrhea cases in 2002 who were people age 15-19 was 1 in 4.11 And barrier contraception is unable to

effectively prevent certain forms of STDs (chlamydia, trichomonis, etc.), and the Pill does nothing to prevent

STDs.12

The problem is getting worse. The practice of contraception, in some form, goes back several thousand years.13

The situation entered another quantum level, however, when in the United States, after 1844, factories began

mass-producing rubber condoms.14 In 1930 the Anglican bishops, breaking with two millennia of Christian
tradition, at the Lambeth Conference, passed a resolution favoring limited acceptance of birth control.15 In

1960, the birth control pill was approved by the FDA.16 In 1965, in its Griswold v. Connecticut decision, the

Supreme Court recognized the constitutional right of married couples to use contraceptives.17 In 1998 and 1999

the FDA approved two products for prescription use for emergency contraception, Preven and Plan B,18 which

are, in fact, abortifacients.19 The point prevalence of contraceptive use among women in the United States was

32% of women age 15-19 currently using contraceptives at interview in 2002, and 62% of women age 15-44

currently using contraceptives at interview in 2002.20 The incidence, or risk, of contraceptive failure varies by

method, but for example, typical use of the pill (combined) results in 8% failure in the first year, and typical use

of the male condom results in 15% failure rate in the first year.21 And 54% of women having abortions used a

contraceptive method during the month they became pregnant.22

Abortion and infanticide were widespread in the pagan Roman empire: the paterfamilias - the father of the

household of perhaps several women - had absolute authority to destroy an infant he did not want.23 In 1973, in

stark contrast with two subsequent millennia of Christian tradition, the US supreme court affirmed a woman’s

right to kill her unborn child. Kindred to risk, the abortion ratio - expressed as abortions per 1,000 live births -

the odds of a pregnancy resulting in an unborn child’s abortion and not birth - reached a high of 436 abortions

per 1000 live births in the United States in 1983.24 More than 80% of women aborting are unmarried - extra-

marital sexual relations are the leading predictor, exposure, cause of abortion.25 At root of these abortions in

unmarried women is the contraceptive mentality which expects that one can engage in sexual activity while

avoiding the natural consequences of pregnancy.26 The abortion ratio in 2000 was 324 abortions per 1000 live

births in the United States in 2000 27 - a lower ratio has not been reported since 1974.28 As much as 43% of the

decline in abortion between 1994 and 2000 can be attributed to the use of emergency contraception.29 Another

characteristic that may have caused the decline in the abortion ratio is abstinence education.30 And another

characteristic that may have caused this outcome is pro-life legislation, education and outreach.31
Endnotes

1 Wetzstein, Cheryl. (2004, March 29), Advocates decry 'antichild view'. The Washington Times.

2 Marston, Cicerly and Cleland, John. (2003, March). Relationships Between Contraception and
Abortion: A Review of the Evidence. International Family Planning Perspectives, p. 6.

3 Haines, Michael. (2005, January 22), Fertility and Mortality in the United States. EH.Net
Encyclopedia.

4 Pope John Paul II. (1995). Evangelium Vitae. Par 58.

5 O'Bannon, Randall K. Out of the Long Dark Night. National Right to Life News.

6 Nathanson, Bernard, Dr. quoted in Hudson, Natalie. (2004, Summer). The Contraception
Misconception. Right to Life News Canada.

7 Wetzstein, op. cit.

8 Hudson, op. cit.

9 Kozlowski, Kim. (2003, November 16), More teens have sex than parents believe. The Detroit
News.

10 Smith, Tom W. (1994, December). American Sexual Behavior: Trends, Socio-Demographic

Differences, and Risk Behavior GSS Topical Report No. 25, National Opinion Research Center
University of Chicago General Social Survey.

11 Kozlowski, op. cit.

12 Bower, Keith. Couple to Couple League. (2005, October 3). Personal Communication..

13 Hardon, John A., S.J. (1991). The Catholic Family in the Modern World. p 1.

14 Mayo Clinic. (2005, April 19). Condoms: Effective birth control and protection from sexually
transmitted diseases.

15 PBS. (2002). Timeline: The Pill.

16 CDC. (2004, July 29). Inventions Improving Women’s Lives.

17 Wind, Rebecca. (2005, May 18). Legalized Birth Control Turning 40 and Facing New Threats.
News Release Alan Guttmacher Institute.

18 FDA. (2004, May 7). FDA's Decision Regarding Plan B: Questions and Answers.
19 American Life League. (1999). PP Profits from Preven. The Ryan Report.

20 Mosher, William D., Ph.D. and Martinez, Gladys, Ph.D. (2004, December 10). Use of
Contraception and Use of Family Planning Services in the United States 1982 - 2002. CDC Advance
Data From Vital And Health Statistics. No 350.

21 The Alan Guttmacher Institute. Facts in Brief. Contraceptive Use.

22 The Alan Guttmacher Institute. (2005, May 18). Facts in Brief: Induced Abortion in the United
States.

23 Hardon, op. cit., pp. 2-4.

24 U.S. Census Bureau. Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2004- 2005. Table 89, p 70.

25 Hudson, op. cit.

26 Ibid.

27 U.S. Census Bureau. Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2004- 2005. Table 89, p 70. op. cit.

28 O'Bannon, Randall K., Ph.D. Abortion Totals, Rates, Ratios Drop to Lowest Levels in Decades.
National Right to Life News.

29 The Alan Guttmacher Institute. Facts in Brief: Induced Abortion in the United States. op. cit.

30 Nathanson, op. cit.

31 O'Bannon, Randall K., Ph.D. Abortion Totals, Rates, Ratios Drop to Lowest Levels in Decades. op.
cit.
Bibliography

Web Newspaper Articles

Kozlowski, Kim. (2003, November 16), More teens have sex than parents believe. The Detroit News,
Retrieved October 14, 2005 form the World Wide Web:
http://www.detnews.com/2003/specialreport/0311/16/a01-326158.htm

Wetzstein, Cheryl. (2004, March 29), Advocates decry 'antichild view'. The Washington Times,
Retrieved October 13, 2005 form the World Wide Web:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/culture/20040328-104937-9017r.htm

Web Articles

The Alan Guttmacher Institute. Facts in Brief: Contraceptive Use. Retrieved October 14, 2005 form
the World Wide Web: http://www.agi-usa.org/pubs/fb_contr_use.html

The Alan Guttmacher Institute. (2005, May 18). Facts in Brief: Induced Abortion in the United States.
Retrieved October 14, 2005 form the World Wide Web:
http://www.agi-usa.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html

American Life League. (1999). PP Profits from Preven. The Ryan Report. Retrieved October 14, 2005
form the World Wide Web: http://www.all.org/stopp/rr9909.htm

CDC. (2004, July 29). Inventions Improving Women’s Lives. Retrieved October 14, 2005 form the
World Wide Web: http://www.cdc.gov/od/spotlight/nwhw/invent.htm

FDA. (2004, May 7). FDA's Decision Regarding Plan B: Questions and Answers. Retrieved October
14, 2005 form the World Wide Web: http://www.fda.gov/cder/drug/infopage/planB/planBQandA.htm

Haines, Michael. (2005, January 22), Fertility and Mortality in the United States. EH.Net
Encyclopedia, edited by Robert Whaples. Retrieved October 13, 2005 form the World Wide Web:
http://eh.net/encyclopedia/article/haines.demography

Hudson, Natalie. (2004, Summer). The Contraception Misconception, Originally published in Right to
Life News Canada, Retrieved October 14, 2005 form the World Wide Web:
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2004_docs/contraceptionmisconception.htm

Pope John Paul II. (1995, March 25). Evangelium Vitae, Retrieved October 14, 2005 from the World
Wide Web: http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-
ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae_en.html

Mayo Clinic. (2005, April 19). Condoms: Effective birth control and protection from sexually
transmitted diseases. Retrieved October 14, 2005 form the World Wide Web:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/invoke.cfm?objectid=F99B5EA5-E85D-4399-91D85DE6614A7E6A
Mosher, William D., Ph.D. and Martinez, Gladys, Ph.D. (2004, December 10). Use of Contraception
and Use of Family Planning Services in the United States 1982 - 2002. CDC Advance Data From Vital
And Health Statistics. No 350. Retrieved October 14, 2005 form the World Wide Web:
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/ad/ad350.pdf

O'Bannon, Randall K. Out of the Long Dark Night. National Right to Life News, Retrieved October
14, 2005 from the World Wide Web: http://www.nrlc.org/news/2003/NRL01/randy.html

O'Bannon, Randall K., Ph.D. Abortion Totals, Rates, Ratios Drop to Lowest Levels in Decades.
National Right to Life News. Retrieved October 14, 2005 form the World Wide Web:
http://www.nrlc.org/news/2003/NRL02/randy.html

PBS. (2002). Timeline: The Pill. Retrieved October 14, 2005 form the World Wide Web:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/pill/timeline/

Smith, Tom W. (1994, December). American Sexual Behavior: Trends, Socio-Demographic

Differences, and Risk Behavior GSS Topical Report No. 25, National Opinion Research Center
University of Chicago General Social Survey. Retrieved October 14, 2005 form the World Wide Web:
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/GSS/

Wind, Rebecca. (2005, May 18). Legalized Birth Control Turning 40 and Facing New Threats. News
Release -The Alan Guttmacher Institute. Retrieved October 14, 2005 form the World Wide Web:
http://www.guttmacher.org/media/nr/2005/05/18/

Personal Communications

Bower, Keith. Couple to Couple League. (2005, October 3). Personal Communication. .

Journal Articles

Marston, Cicerly and Cleland, John. (2003, March). Relationships Between Contraception and
Abortion: A Review of the Evidence. International Family Planning Perspectives, Vol 29, No 1, pp 6-
13. (Retreived through JSTOR digital archive October 4, 2005)

Books

Hardon, John A., S.J. (1991). The Catholic Family in the Modern World. St. Paul. The Leaflet Missal
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U.S. Census Bureau. Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2004- 2005.