Chinese women prefer to pop the pill than rely on condoms

BEIJING - Many Chinese women prefer popping the morning-after pill rather than have other contraceptives as they no longer have to rely on their partners to use condoms, said a survey.

A survey of over 40,000 Chinese showed widespread misconceptions over sexual health and the use of contraceptives, China Daily reported Friday.

The online survey was held by the China Population Communication Center.

“Widespread misuse, if not abuse, of the morning-after pill is of great concern,” Beijing-based sexologist Ma Xiaonian was quoted as saying.

About half of the respondents said they preferred the morning-after pill to other forms of contraception as it was effective and convenient.

Ma said: “Some women use it frequently, which, apart from common side effects, including vomiting and headache, will affect recipients’ reproductive health.”

Wu Shangchun, a researcher at the National Population and Family Planning Commission, said the trend was catalysed by advertising hype and its availability.

The morning-after pill, an emergency contraceptive, is now available without a prescription at drugstores in China.

“Billboards advertising the drug are even erected on campus,” said Liu, a female student here.

She said the pill was widely used by some of her fellow students who no longer have to rely on their partners to use condoms.

Sexologist Ma said: “Morning-after pills should not be used as a regular form of contraception. Their misuse can be harmful to health.”

Barely 10 percent of the respondents said they would seek reliable information, while the rest stated that they informally sought knowledge about sex and reproduction, usually from the Internet.