Meet the new app that is as effective as the birth control pill

If you have been taking birth control pills for a few years, you may have considered taking a break from the drug, but not because you want to get pregnant, but because of health.

Although it sparked a sexual revolution in the early 1960s by allowing women's emancipation from pregnancy control, the pill has been the subject of some controversy today because of its adverse reactions.

It is true that science has evolved a lot and that side effects such as decreased libido, fluid retention and increased skin oils have been alleviated.

However, more recent research has shown that the birth control pill is related to a fourfold increase in the risk of a serious blood clot, the dreaded thrombosis.

Although this risk exists in any hormonal method of contraception, it would be even higher in the new generation of pills due to the type of hormone employed.

Read also: Contraceptive use and decreased libido

Given this scenario, some researchers have been concerned with developing safer and more innovative non-hormonal contraceptive alternatives. This is the case of Elina Berglund, who developed Natural Cycles.

The app that can replace your pill

Elina Berglund is a woman like many others who would like to stop taking the pill and use another contraceptive method. But she has an "advantage": Elina is a Swedish researcher with vast academic knowledge, a PhD in Physics and a member of the team that discovered the Higgs Boson, including winning a Nobel Prize for it.

Together with her husband Raoul Scherwitzl, also a PhD in physics, and a multidisciplinary team, Elina has developed an app called Natural Cycles that aims to calculate the days of the month when the woman is most likely of getting pregnant. In this way, the woman can prevent an unwanted pregnancy by using the condom or even abstaining from sex. Still, of course, this information is very interesting for women who want to get pregnant.

It may be a little difficult to trust an application that initially looks like a "reformed little table". However, this may change your mind: According to the Pearl Index (a comparison of the effectiveness of contraceptive methods), the app fared better than the pill, with a lower chance of failure.

How does Natural Cycles Work?

The app has an algorithm that takes into account factors such as sperm life span, cycle irregularities and especially body temperature. This way, the app can detect the different phases of the menstrual cycle, including ovulation, and indicate trends for the next cycles.

Read also: The different types of tubal ligation and their characteristics

For this, the app needs the woman to measure her body temperature every day, as soon as she wakes up, and report this data to the app. According to the research team, this method is based on the fact that the woman's temperature varies during the cycle as follows: during the follicular phase, which goes until approximately 14 days, the temperature is lower. After ovulation, the temperature rises from 0.2 to 0.4 degree Celsius.

Because it is a very small variation, the temperature difference cannot be accurately identified with a standard thermometer. Therefore, the app provides a special thermometer with two decimal places.

From recording the temperature and the date of menstruation, the app can then calculate the fertile days of the cycle by marking them as 'red days'. Non-fertile days are considered? Green days? by the app.

When you start using the app, the woman will get more notices of? Red days? than normal, as the app wants to ensure that it will not confuse a fertile day for not fertile and provide a possible unwanted pregnancy.

By requesting a regular temperature measurement, the app is suitable for women with a well-established routine and who are very disciplined and organized. In addition, care must be taken with factors that may modify body temperature, such as disease or alcohol consumption.

Read also: The pros and cons of suspending menstruation

Remember that this contraceptive method does not protect against STDs, so condoms remain indispensable.

How can I download this app?

Natural Cycles is available for iOS and Android and costs $ 8.99 per month.You can subscribe to an annual usage plan for $ 64.99. Purchasing the app includes the special thermometer you receive at your home.

What do you think about this app? Does Natural Cycles fit your routine and your financial means? Before making changes to your birth control method, be sure to talk to your gynecologist for further guidance.

Will a Male Contraceptive Pill Soon Be Available? | This Morning (April 2024)