page_title: Family planning
section_title: Health
hierarchical_section_title: Family planning / Purposes / Health
caption_attribution_description: English: A family planning placard seen near Lalibela, Ethiopia. It shows some negative effects of having too many children. (Poverty, malnourishment, illnesses, insufficient education, deforestation, desertification) Deutsch: Ein Familienplanungs-Plakat in der Nähe von Lalibela, Äthiopien. Es zeigt einige negative Effekte auf, die auftreten können, wenn Familien zu viele Kinder in die Welt setzen. (Armut, Mangelernährung, Krankheiten, ungenügende Schulbildung, Abholzung, Desertifikation)
context_page_description: Family planning services are defined as "educational, comprehensive medical or social activities which enable individuals, including minors, to determine freely the number and spacing of their children and to select the means by which this may be achieved". Family planning may involve consideration of the number of children a woman wishes to have, including the choice to have no children, as well as the age at which she wishes to have them. These matters are influenced by external factors such as marital situation, career considerations, financial position, and any disabilities that may affect their ability to have children and raise them. If sexually active, family planning may involve the use of contraception and other techniques to control the timing of reproduction.
  Other aspects of family planning include sex education, prevention and management of sexually transmitted infections, pre-conception counseling and management, and infertility management. Family planning, as defined by the United Nations and the World Health Organization, encompasses services leading up to conception.
context_section_description: The WHO states about maternal health that:
  "Maternal health refers to the health of women during pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. While motherhood is often a positive and fulfilling experience, for too many women it is associated with suffering, ill-health and even death."
  About 99% of maternal deaths occur in less developed countries; less than one half occur in sub-Saharan Africa and almost a third in South Asia.
  Both early and late motherhood have increased risks. Young teenagers face a higher risk of complications and death as a result of pregnancy. Waiting until the mother is at least 18 years old before trying to have children improves maternal and child health.
  Also, if additional children are desired after a child is born, it is healthier for the mother and the child to wait at least 2 years after the previous birth before attempting to conceive (but not more than 5 years). After a miscarriage or abortion, it is healthier to wait at least 6 months.
  When planning a family, women should be aware that reproductive risks increase with the age of the woman. Like older men, older women have a higher chance of having a child with autism or Down syndrome, the chances of having multiple births increases, which cause further late-pregnancy risks, they have an increased chance of developing gestational diabetes, the need for a Caesarian section is greater, older women's bodies are not as well-suited for delivering a baby.  The risk of prolonged labor is higher. Older mothers have a higher risk of a long labor, putting the baby in distress.
caption: Placard showing negative effects of lack of family planning and having too many children and infants (Ethiopia)
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