Abstract

PIP: Humans have tried to control fertility for centuries. Primitive, preliterate societies practiced infanticide and abortion. When primitive women understood the advantages of conception control, they tried, when possible, to use contraception. In the 4th century B.C., Plato and Aristotle advocated a one-child family. Greek medical literature reported a hollow tube inserted through the cervix into the uterus and a potion as contraceptives. Islamic physicians had much knowledge about conception control. The attitudes toward contraception. In the 5th century B.C., Saint Augustine condemned contraception, even among married couples. The condom emerged in the early modern period. Yet, they were usually worn to protect against disease, e.g., bilharzia in Egypt and syphilis in Europe. The cervical cap and the diaphragm are examples of occlusive pessaries. By 1880, contraceptives and spermicides were advertised. In 1928, the IUD joined the existing contraceptives. Today we have combined oral contraceptives. Judaic law requires husbands to fulfill their wives sexual needs, separate from their duty to procreate. It also calls men, not women, to procreate and forbids men from masturbating, thus Judaic law does not forbid women from practicing contraception. The Roman Catholic church forbids contraceptive use because it is a sin against nature. Some Protestant denominations have allowed contraceptive use. Islamic law states that children are gifts from Allah. Some Moslems believe that they must have many children, but Allah and the Prophet state that children have rights to education and future security. These rights allow couples to prevent pregnancy. Neither Hinduism nor Buddhism prohibit contraceptive use. Differences in husband-wife communication, sex roles, access to contraceptives, and traditional family values will have more of an effect on contraceptive use and fertility than theological barriers or the social class of religious groups.