An Indiana teacher, 23, told TIME in 1967 “When I got married, I was still in college and wanted to be certain that I finished. Now we want to buy a home and it’s going to be possible a lot sooner if I teach. With the Pill I know I can keep earning money and not worry about an accident that would ruin everything,” Writes Time Magazine reporter Nancy Gibbs in an article called The Pill at 50: Sex, Freedom & Paradox.

Fifty years later this story is still relevant to young people seeking financial stability during these economic hard times.  As the Pill turns 50, what better time to talk about the impact it has made on our society?

The Food and Drug Administration announced that it would approve the oral contraceptive in 1960. At the time, promoters of the pill hoped that it would be an end to poverty, a cure for divorce, and the elimination of unwed pregnancy.  Few of it’s promoters imagined how it would become a tool for transforming women’s lives writes New York Times Op-Ed contributor Elaine Tyler May.

The pill is one of the most transformative medical breakthroughs of the past 100 years.  In 1999 the Economist named it one of the most important scientific advances of the 20^th century. The pill enables women to plan their own futures by giving them the ability to make decisions about the type of education, employment, economics and lifestyles they envision for themselves and their children.

Advocates of the pill have long fought for all women to have access to the pill.  When it first debuted in 1960 it was only available to married women in a few states until a court decision in 1965 made it available to married women in all states. It wasn’t even available to single women in all states until another court decision in 1972.

“By the 1970s the true impact of the Pill could begin to be measured, and it was not on the sexual behavior of American women; it was on how they envisioned their lives, their choices and their obligations. In 1970 the median age at which college graduates married was about 23; by 1975, as use of the Pill among single women became more common, that age had jumped 2.5 years. The fashion for large families went the way of the girdle. In 1963, 80 percent of non-Catholic college women said they wanted three or more children; that plunged to 29 percent by 1973. More women were able to imagine a life that included both a family and a job, which changed their childbearing calculations,” writes Time Magazine reporter Nancy Gibbs.

Very quickly, the availability of the pill in America also resulted in huge advancements in women’s and infant health, and a decline in unwanted pregnancies- particularly in married women. The pill has played a key role in women’s ability to plan and space pregnancies, which has contributed to improved maternal, infant and family health.

• From 1965 to 2005, the rate of maternal death declined by 52 percent (to 15.1 per 100,000 live births).
• Unwanted pregnancies among married women have been cut by more than half, from one in five births in 1960-61 to just nine percent in 2002.
• Births that occurred sooner than married women wanted declined from 45 percent in 1965 to 14 percent in 2002.

Today, 19 percent of women between the ages of 15 and 44 use the pill and more than 60 percent of women between 15 and 44 use birth control.  In 2010, too many pregnancies are still unintended. It is essential that the pill finally be available to all women in the United States, regardless of what kind of insurance they have or their ability to pay.

Economic, political, and social achievements are celebrated on March 8 during International Women’s Day (IWD). A day I’ve never heard of before. I am sure some of you have never heard of this day either. While I learn, in return I can share that with you.

Each year hundreds of events occur throughout the month of March hosted by organizations, governments, and women’s groups around the world. 100 years ago the first IWD was rallied in Europe to fight for women’s right to vote. Women and men rallied joined together to fight for women to vote, work, and hold office.

If I took out the time to recap the timeline of women’s history you’d be reading a long research essay. However, I can point out that women’s rights have been fought in this country and internationally for more than 100 years (http://www.womensrightsfriends.org/).

Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) has remained true to protecting and advancing the rights of reproductive health services for women and families not only in the US, but also throughout the world. . PPFA works with other nations in the world to provide health care access and rights (http://www.plannedparenthood.org/). Advocating social change throughout the world is a way PPFA can improve the quality of life for women.

Failure to provide health care to women worldwide yearly results in:

• 500,000 women die unnecessarily from pregnancy related issues
• More than 200,000 women cannot receive contraceptives due to lack of access
• 20 million pregnancies end in unsafe abortions

You can read more interesting information from Cecile Richards: International Women’s Day. Are we There Yet? Richards, president of PPFA, blogged the importance of global health care on the Huffington Post website.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cecile-richards/international-womens-day_b_489752.html

Planned Parenthood is not the only nonprofit organization that fights for women’s rights. There are several organizations that have also made a goal to improve the lives of women worldwide. I have listed some websites that share the same core goals to advance global equality for women and young girls.

Here are a few websites you can visit to be apart of the movement

Women for Women International: this website focuses on helping women survivors of war rebuild their lives.

• http://www.womenforwomen.org/

Madre: the network encompasses thousands of women and families who are on the frontlines of our global crisis. Madre creates programs in peace building, women’s health and combating violence against women.

• http://www.madre.org/index.php?video=1

Global Fund for Women: group of women and men who provide grants to support women’s groups around the world.

• http://www.globalfundforwomen.org/cms/

Where do you go to search for information regarding your health? I feel like I have to become a top investigator when I have a simple question. Coming across a website with false information scares me the most when I am searching for advice. And people should all be careful to get accurate information especially when dealing with their health, let alone their sexual health.

It can be embarrassing when facing the thought that you may be pregnant but are unsure. Maybe you think you’ve contracted an STI. There are also simple questions about where you could seek confidential help that could become a bit awkward if you have to ask someone you know.

I asked a few friends which websites they found most useful and compelling. Some said they’ve never searched online for health related issues, while others told me they simply use Google and go to the first suggested website.

The problem with Google’s suggested sites are some of the websites don’t always provide enough information, can be misleading, or confusing. Well I have taken out some time to gather a few different websites that you can quickly gain access to and know that you can trust what you are reading. There’s no reason not to be in the “know” about your health.

Check out the websites below regarding information ranging from sexual health, pregnancy, and local health centers.

To find a women’s health center near you, you can visit Planned Parenthood’s main site:

www.plannedparenthood.org

STI information:

To find general information regarding STI symptoms, causes, and cures. Visit the Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention.

www.cdc.gov/std/general

· Health information for teen girls. Visit Center for Young Women’s Health covering various topics of health related concerns. Interactive website for teenage girls with quizzes and games.

www.youngwomenshealth.org

· The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation website covers information varying from current health reform policies to women’s health and STI statistics.

www.kff.org

Pregnancy:

Features about determining pregnancy, advice for alternatives if you are pregnant, and information on what to do as a young teen.

http://www.teenpregnancy.com/

As we mark the start of a new year, let’s resolve to defeat cervical cancer, the second leading cause of cancer deaths among women.  Every year about 11,000 women in the U.S. are diagnosed with cervical cancer, and about 4,000 American women die of the disease. If we’re going to defeat cervical cancer, it’s important to know what causes it and how to protect ourselves from it.

Almost all cervical cancers are caused by HPV (human papilloma virus). HPV is a common virus that is spread through sexual intercourse. HPV is one of the most common sexually transmitted infections.There are many types of HPV. Certain high risk types of HPV can cause long-term infections that can lead to cervical cancer. Two types of HPV cause 70 percent of cases of cervical cancer.

Women usually don’t know they have cervical cancer because they don’t have any symptoms. Cancer cells cannot be seen with the naked eye, so women need to visit a gynecologist for routine cancer screenings. Regular screenings are the best way to identify precancerous cells and treat them before they become cancer. The most invasive cervical cancers are found in women who have not had regular Pap tests.

Cervical cancer is a preventable disease that women can protect themselves from. One of the quickest paths to eradicating this disease is through regular cervical cancer screenings and protecting yourself from HPV through consistent and correct condom use and/or the HPV vaccine.

You may find that you have more questions about cervical cancer and HPV, we recommend that you find the answers to your sexual health concerns by talking with your health care provider, or at a local women’s health center, like Planned Parenthood.