FAMILY PLANNING

Family planning is an old as mankind. Family planning is the practice of

controlling the number of children in a family and the intervals between their births.
Contemporary notions of family planning, however, tend to place a woman and her
childbearing decisions at the center of the discussion, as notions of women's
empowerment and reproductive autonomy have gained traction in many parts of the
world. Family planning may involve consideration of the number of children a woman
wishes to have, including the choice to have no children, as well as the age at which
she wishes to have them.

Family planning is…

 Giving birth according to the health and economic conditions of the family,
 Spacing of children
 Giving birth of the mother according to her right age.

Benefits of family planning

Preventing pregnancy-related health risks in women

A woman’s ability to choose if and when to become pregnant has a direct
impact on her health and well-being. Family planning allows spacing of pregnancies
and can delay pregnancies in young women at increased risk of health problems and
death from early childbearing. It prevents unintended pregnancies, including those of
older women who face increased risks related to pregnancy. Family planning enables
women who wish to limit the size of their families to do so. Evidence suggests that
women who have more than 4 children are at increased risk of maternal mortality.
By reducing rates of unintended pregnancies, family planning also reduces the need
for unsafe abortion.

Reducing infant mortality

Family planning can prevent closely spaced and ill-timed pregnancies and
births, which contribute to some of the world’s highest infant mortality rates. Infants of
mothers who die as a result of giving birth also have a greater risk of death and poor
health.

Reducing adolescent pregnancies

Pregnant adolescents are more likely to have preterm or low birth-weight
babies. Babies born to adolescents have higher rates of neonatal mortality. Many
adolescent girls who become pregnant have to leave school. This has long-term
implications for them as individuals, their families and communities.

Slowing population growth

Family planning is key to slowing unsustainable population growth and the
resulting negative impacts on the economy, environment, and national and regional
development efforts.

What the Bible says about Family planning

Since modern birth control and fertility options were not available during
biblical times, the Bible is silent on the matter of using these methods to prevent
or encourage pregnancy. Preventing pregnancy for family planning purposes,
either temporarily or permanently, is a neutral act and not considered sinful.
Exploring treatment options for infertility is likewise a neutral act and not sinful.
However, the husband and wife should be in agreement on any decisions
regarding any future children.

While there is nothing wrong with a married couple planning for their family’s
future, they must accept that God’s will cannot be thwarted. There is nothing in
the Bible that states every married couple must have children, but God’s
sovereignty will usurp a couple’s plans, no matter what precautions they
take. Proverbs 16:9 says, “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the
LORD establishes their steps.” If God’s will is to bring a child into a couple’s life,
contraceptive efforts will not bar His way. If a couple has sex, with or without
contraception, they must be prepared for the possibility of pregnancy.

If a woman becomes pregnant unexpectedly or unwillingly, the pregnancy should

be allowed to come to term. Abortion or Emergency Contraceptive Pills are not
an acceptable form of birth control because abortion and the morning-after pill
work post-conception, resulting in the death of a living human being. God knows
every person before his or her creation and lovingly forms the body within the
womb (Jeremiah 1:5; Psalm 139:13–16). Many options, including adoption, are
available for those who do not wish to keep the baby.

Children are a gift from the Lord (Psalm 127:3–4), but they bring with them great
responsibility for parents. If a married couple decides that they are not ready for
children yet or they wish to time pregnancies to space them a certain number of
years apart, that is a decision they are free to make. Through prayer and
 discussion, a husband and wife may wisely plan their future and the future of any
children God blesses them with (Proverbs 16:3; 21:5; James 1:5).

Healthy Timing and Spacing of Pregnancies

is an intervention to help women and families delay or space their
pregnancies in order to achieve the healthiest outcomes for women, newborns,
infants and children. Healthy Timing and Spacing of Pregnancies differs from
previous birth spacing approaches that refer only to the interval after a live birth
and when to give birth. It provides guidance on the healthiest age for the first
pregnancy, as well as the age when a woman may be too old to risk becoming pregnant.
Thus, HTSP encompasses a broader concept of the reproductive cycle, starting from the
healthiest age for the first pregnancy in adolescents, to spacing subsequent pregnancies
following a live birth, still birth, miscarriage or abortion – capturing all pregnancy-
related intervals in a woman’s reproductive life.

Multiple studies have shown that adverse maternal and perinatal

outcomes are related to closely spaced pregnancies. As shown in the table to the
right, taken from the above-mentioned WHO report, the risks are particularly high
for women who become pregnant very soon after a previous pregnancy,
miscarriage or abortion.

For women ages 15-29, spacing or delaying pregnancies is the main reason for an
increase in demand for family planning. Data from developing countries show that
younger, lower-parity women have the highest demand and need for delaying and
spacing births.
For postpartum women, unmet need for spacing among this group is very high: 95-98
percent of postpartum women do not want another child within two years, yet only 40
percent are using family planning. In short, 60 percent of postpartum women who want
to space their pregnancy have an unmet need.

The core messages of healthy timing and spacing of pregnancies are:

 For your health and your baby’s health, wait until you are at least 18 years of age
before trying to become pregnant.
 Consider delaying pregnancy by using a family planning method of your choice
without interruption until you are 18 years old.
 For couples who desire another pregnancy after a live birth, the messages
are:
 Wait at least 24 months, but not more than five years, before trying to become
pregnant again. Consider using a family planning method of your choice without
interruption during that time.
  For couples who decide to have a child after a miscarriage or abortion, the
messages are:
 For the health of the mother and the baby, wait at least six months before
trying to become pregnant again.
 Consider using a family planning method of your choice without
interruption during that time.

Where to go for advice on Family planning

 Family doctor
 Family planning clinic or Physician’s clinic
 Hospitals especially tertiary hospitals
 Rural health center

BATAIN,JOANNA MAY DV.

CBET 22-501A