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BIRTH CONTROL
The Big Thing Happening in Birth Control
What: An essay from Barbara Speed in The Guardian captures the complexity around the birth control shifts we are starting to see some evidence of: women moving from hormonal methods to natural cycle tracking, in some cases to avoid side effects, at the risk of getting pregnant.
Key line: “But while some may have fallen prey to conspiracy theories, others will have spent years diligently trying option after option – from the mini-pill, to the injection, implant, cap – waiting for the appointment, reading up on the pros and cons, looking for the right fit. With the implant finally yanked from my arm, I remember walking out into the rain, arm throbbing, Googling what I could try next. More than eight in 10 of Bpas’s respondents had switched methods at least once.”
Source: The Guardian
PREGNANCY + POSTPARTUM
Preventing Type 2 Diabetes After Gestational Diabetes
What: A study from the University of Pittsburgh looked at 225 women with gestational diabetes who tdeveloped type 2 diabetes within 12 years of delivery. They found the diabetes was driven by pancreatic beta-cell dysfunction, insulin resistance, or a mix of both.
Key line: “The work builds upon recent research the team published in Science Advances that was the first to identify molecular mechanisms of the progression from gestational diabetes to type 2 diabetes. A goal of future research is developing approaches to easily [determine] whether women fall into one of the clusters, and then provide early interventions that prevent progression to type 2 diabetes.”
Source: University of Pittsburgh
Why Birth Centers Aren’t Where They’re Needed in California
What: KFF Health News looks at how California state rules for birth centers – typically operated by midwives – may be preventing new centers from opening despite need for more maternity services. Getting a license for a birth center can take “as long as four years.”
Key line: “’All they’ve essentially done is made it more dangerous to have a baby,’ said Sacramento midwife Bethany Sasaki. ‘People have to drive two hours now because a birth center can’t open, so it’s more dangerous. People are going to be having babies in cars on the side of the road.’… The state last updated birth center regulations more than a decade ago, before hospitals’ mass exodus from obstetrics.”
Source: KFF Health News
ABORTION ACCESS
Abortion Ban States Try to Go Even Further
What: The 19th breaks down how states that have already banned abortion may try to restrict access even further. The legislation filed so far in state legislatures focuses on criminalizing abortion pills, targeting clinicians who prescribe abortion pills for women in abortion ban states, setting up further restrictions against minors getting information on abortion, and more.
Key line: “State lawmakers aren’t waiting for the new president to clarify his approach, and many have taken Trump’s election as validation to pursue new restrictions. ‘It emboldened anti-abortion legislators,’ said Jennifer Driver, senior director of reproductive rights at the State Innovation Exchange, which advocates for progressive policy in statehouses. ‘It pushed the limit.’”
Source: The 19th
MENOPAUSE
No Link Between Hormone Therapy and Brain Cancer
What: More good news for hormone replacement therapy to treat menopause symptoms: a study looking at more than 75,000 women over a median of 12 years found no link between HRT and a brain cancer known as glioma. Women are more likely to get gliomas than men.
Key line: “’This study found that, although there is a known sex difference in the incidence of gliomas, with women being six times more likely to develop the disease compared with men, there does not appear to be an association between glioma and hormone therapy use in postmenopausal women. However, larger prospective studies with longer duration of follow-up are needed to confirm these results,’ says Dr. Stephanie Faubion, medical director for The Menopause Society.”
Source: The Menopause Society
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