This study focuses on contraceptive management among heterosexual adolescents and young adults, with particular emphasis on women, given their prominent role in family planning within hierarchical gender contexts. We describe the typical script for youth contraception, which involves the use of condoms at the onset of sexual activity, followed by the incorporation of hormonal methods or the withdrawal method. We also find that adolescents frequently resort to the use of emergency contraception.
Women frequently report experiencing side effects from hormonal contraceptives, which results in high rates of discontinuation and an increased interest in copper IUDs, which are scarce resources within the Brazilian National Health System. It can be concluded that, despite gender constraints and social, ethnic, and racial inequalities, the interviewees value contraception, offering insights for the review and improvement of public policies concerning young people.
Researchers from a variety of academic disciplines, public policy makers, educators, healthcare providers, and other professionals have frequently addressed adolescent pregnancy. A moralistic discourse is typically employed, wherein the phenomenon is regarded as a cause or aggravating factor of social problems. A study utilizing data from the Brazilian Live Birth Information System SINASC found that the proportion of adolescents aged years who become mothers is decreasing, while the proportion of adolescents aged years who become mothers is stable, despite differences across racial groups Goes et al.
Moreover, Brazil has witnessed a substantial decline in total fertility rates over recent decades, with an average of 1. Notwithstanding these shifts, Brazil exhibits considerable socioeconomic and demographic contrasts in family planning. The National Health Survey revealed that white women aged 15 to 49 years from southern and southeastern Brazil were more likely to use oral contraceptives Despite the decreasing prevalence of this permanent method, it is noteworthy that the groups were the most likely to resort to it Brazil, a ; Trindade et al.
It can be reasonably inferred from the findings of Diniz, Medeiros, and Madeiro that the use of contraceptive methods CM in Brazil has likely contributed to a reduction in the incidence of abortions. In Latin America, the use of long-acting reversible contraceptives β which have not yet been made fully available in the Brazilian National Health System NHS β has grown, although with significant social disparities Bearak et al.
