Morning After Pill Over the Counter Cost, Side Effects & Effectiveness: American Teens Using Drug to Avoid Pregnancy Rising

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It looks like teens are becoming more responsible when it comes to sex, as a study shows teen girls are turning to over-the-counter drugs as preventive measures to avoid teenage pregnancy. Further more, the same study has found out that sexually-active teens have decreased to 14 percent for girls and 22 percent for boys in the last 25 years.

UPI Health News reports that according to a study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 20 percent of sexually-active teens are using "morning-after pills," an emergency contraception that prevents pregnancy up to five days after having unprotected sex. The results have shown that the trend has started in 2002 with an 8-percent usage, which spiked up to 14 percent in 2006 up to 2010. Currently, 22 percent of teens are using this pill as contraceptive.

The government has previously imposed a limit to the number of "morning-after pills" an individual can buy over-the-counter, but since this limit has been removed, more teens are given easy access to the contraceptive. The pill is highly effective as it has a 90-percent chance of preventing pregnancy if taken 72 hours after having unprotected sex. It is also more affordable than other contraceptives as its price ranges only from $35 to $50 nationwide.

Planned Parenthood Organization shares that emergency contraception pills work by keeping the ovary from releasing an egg, which delays ovulation. Without an egg, a sperm cell has nothing to fertilize, thus no pregnancy occurs.

Although it is safe to use pills, there are several side effects like heavier period, breast tenderness, dizziness and nausea. Frequent use may also result to irregular menstruation so most experts suggest talking to an OB-GYNE first before taking pills.

Philly News adds that the CDC study has also discovered a decrease in number of teens having sex between the ages of 15 to 19. The rate has been dramatically reduced in the last quarter of a century, noting that only 44 percent of teen girls and 47 percent of teen boys have had sexual intercourse.

Dr. Jill Rabin, cochief of the Division of Ambulatory Care & Women's Health Programs at North Shore-LIJ Health System in New York, said the drop in sexual activity among teens may be related to the AIDS epidemic and cultural change. This could have made teens more aware of how sexually-transmitted diseases and teen pregnancy can affect one's life.

The report and analysis may be viewed in the CDC website, under NCHS Data Brief.