It condemns the FDA for not requiring patient informed consent forms until recently, although Norplant has had such an informed consent since 1995. The Population Council encourages the use of modern contraception by women and men in the exercise of free choice to regulate their own fertility. Adoption of contraception should always be a voluntary, informed choice, with the individual making the decision whether to use contraception, which method to use, when to use it, and when to stop or try another. While Norplant is not for all women, we at the Population Council believe in expanding all women's contraceptive options, not restricting them. Full disclosure is the only way to go.
Women expect it now.
And please ask Population Council scientist and Norplant developer Sheldon Segal and his cronies to stop belittling the women's health movement. Another key finding is that negative experiences associated with the implant clearly play a role in a woman's decision to discontinue method use. Regarding factual inaccuracies, it's you, not me, who perpetuate them, sometimes recklessly. For example, we know that hormone residues are found in the breast milk of Norplant users, but we have no idea what the long-range effects on the adult reproductive system of the nursing infant might turn out to be. It's too soon to tell.