Family size, contraception, RTIs, STDs and HIV/AIDS
Planning family size protects the health of mothers and children. Infections passed through sexual contact, including HIV, can be prevented by one faithful partner and condoms.
Population and informed choices about family size
India has one of the largest populations in the world. A large population can be a great strength, but only with good education, health care and jobs for all. The choices couples make about how many children to have, and when, add up to the size of the country's population. Children are precious. But an unplanned pregnancy can harm the health of the mother and the child. Parents may also not have the money or time to care well for many children. Planning the size of the family and the gap between children leaves more for food, education and health. The couple should decide together, with correct information and with the woman's health in mind, not under pressure to prove fertility or to have a son.
Methods of contraception
| Method | Type | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Condom (men) or diaphragm (women) | Temporary: barrier | Stops sperms from meeting the egg; condoms also help prevent STDs and HIV |
| Copper T (an IUCD, intra uterine contraceptive device) | Temporary: placed in the uterus by a trained medical person | Prevents the growing embryo from implanting in the uterus |
| Oral contraceptive pills | Temporary: taken by mouth | Stop the ovaries from releasing eggs, so fertilisation cannot happen; start them only with medical advice |
| Vasectomy (men) and tubectomy (women) | Permanent: surgery | The vas deferens or the fallopian tubes are tied or blocked, so sperms and eggs cannot meet |
Choosing a method
- With temporary methods, the ability to have children returns once the method is stopped. They suit couples who want to delay the first child or space their children.
- Permanent methods suit couples who have completed their family.
- A couple should choose a method that fits their needs, after advice from a trained medical person.
- Government health centres give contraceptives free or at low cost, along with counselling.
RTIs and STDs
- Reproductive tract infections (RTIs) are infections of the reproductive organs. Poor genital hygiene, including poor hygiene during periods, can cause them.
- Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are RTIs passed from one person to another during sexual contact. Examples: gonorrhoea, syphilis, herpes, chlamydia, genital warts and chancroid.
- Signs include itching or soreness of the genitals; blisters, sores or a rash; a foul-smelling discharge; and pain while passing urine. Women may also have pain in the lower back and abdomen.
- Some infected people show no signs and pass the infection on without knowing. Women catch STDs more easily, may show no signs for longer, and young women are at higher risk.
- See a doctor at once: prompt and complete treatment cures most STDs, and the partner should be treated too. Untreated STDs can cause infertility (being unable to have children).
- Prevention: one faithful partner, and the correct use of a condom every time.
HIV: how it spreads, and how it does not
What HIV does, and how to prevent it
- HIV is a retrovirus: its genetic material is RNA.
- It infects T-lymphocytes, white blood cells that defend the body, and makes thousands of copies of itself.
- An infected person may show no signs for 10 to 15 years, but can still pass the virus on.
- Slowly the defence cells fall in number, and the body can no longer fight other infections. This stage is AIDS (Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome).
- Anti-retroviral therapy (ART) can slow the change from HIV infection to AIDS.
- Prevention: one faithful partner and the correct use of condoms. Use only sterile needles and tested blood. An infected pregnant woman should get medical advice on safe delivery and breastfeeding.
Primary health centres and ASHA workers across India give advice on family planning and the spacing of children. The red ribbon worn on World AIDS Day, 1 December, reminds everyone that HIV can be prevented and that people living with it deserve respect.
2 marks: “Write the full forms of HIV and AIDS. Name two ways in which HIV spreads.” HIV: Human Immunodeficiency Virus. AIDS: Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome. It spreads through unprotected sex with an infected person, infected blood, shared needles, or from an infected mother to her baby (any two).
2 marks: “Name two temporary methods and one permanent method of contraception.” Temporary: condom, copper T, oral pills (any two). Permanent: vasectomy in men or tubectomy in women.
3 marks: “What are STDs? Name three, give two signs, and say how they can be prevented.” Infections passed from person to person during sexual contact. Gonorrhoea, syphilis, herpes (also chlamydia, warts, chancroid). Signs: itching or sores of the genitals, discharge, pain while passing urine. Prevention: one faithful partner, condoms, and prompt treatment of both partners.
HIV spreads by S-B-N-M: Sex without a condom, Blood, Needles, Mother to baby. Not by hugs, food, toilets or mosquitoes.