Diaphragms

Is It the Right Choice for You?

By Shel Franco

Picture this.

The baby is off to dreamland, the phone is off the hook, and you and your partner are finally able to enjoy an adult moment. Just as things heat up, he scurries out to the kitchen and returns with a hollowed-out lemon half.

By now you're feeling rejected, confused and convinced your love will never be a Casanova. But wait. That's exactly who he is trying to be. Rumor has it that history's quintessential lover provided each of his conquests with a hollowed-out lemon. For what? Birth control, of course.

In fact, ancient populations relied on the lemon as birth control for two reasons: The hollowed fruit, when inserted into the vagina, acted as a barrier to sperm passing through the cervix, and the acid served as an all-natural spermicide.

Today, few women would visit the produce section for contraception thanks to birth control pioneer Margaret Sanger, who brought the Dutch-invented plastic diaphragm to the United States in 1916.

Over the years, changes have been made to make the diaphragm more comfortable, but the basics are still the same -- a circular object, small enough to be inserted into the vagina but large enough to cover the entire cervix.

The diaphragm, which resembles a round latex cap, may be inserted several hours before having sex. This is accomplished much like the use of a tampon, only there is no applicator. Instead, you fill the "cup" with spermicidal jelly, fold the apparatus in half, slide it into the vagina and guide it over your cervix with little more than sensation and instinct guiding the way.

"Diaphragm users must be extremely comfortable with their bodies and must be able to insert and remove the diaphragm without difficulty," says Dr. Susan Dantoni, an obstetrician and gynecologist in Geneva, N.Y.

If you insert the diaphragm snuggly over the cervix, your chances of becoming pregnant are low, but not nearly as low as with other forms of birth control. The diaphragm has long been toted as a less reliable form of contraception.

According to Planned Parenthood Federation of America, 20 out of 100 women using the diaphragm will become pregnant in the first year. Your odds increase if you use the diaphragm correctly each and every time. Dr. Dantoni puts that effectiveness at about 90 to 94 percent, but both figures are substantially lower than the near 100 percent effectiveness that the Pill enjoys.

Want to see more?

• The Facts on Foam
• The Inside Scoop on IUDs
• Cover Up! Are Condoms For You?
• Popping the Pill
• Deciding on Diaphragms
• The Results are In! What is Your Preferred Method of Birth Control?