Top conservative influencers on social media platforms like Twitter and Rumble have coalesced in recent months around talking points connecting birth control to a variety of negative health outcomes, which experts say instill fear. in women who might otherwise benefit from the use of contraception.
But the information the influencers refer to lacks crucial context, says OB/GYN Dr. Danielle Jones, and does not include recent scientific developments that challenge their narrative.
Tim Pool, Ben Shapiro and Steve Bannon have created anti-birth control content in the last six months. Sometimes, they feature conservative female personalities who create content on women’s issues.
Alex Clark, who hosts a pop culture show for the conservative youth messaging organization Turning Point USA, is a conservative woman who has lashed out at hormonal birth control in recent months. Progressive watchdog publication Media Matters for America first reported that Clark said her “mission” is to “get young women off this pill.” In a direct message response, Clark wrote: “Birth control may be right for some in some cases, but we shouldn’t take it blindly because of acne and we shouldn’t treat it as the default for all women.”
While some tendencies in conservative politics have spent years attacking birth control, the most recent resurgence in anti-birth control talking points comes alongside a broader push by conservative creators online against the medical establishment. and treatments, from vaccinations to gender-affirming care, all of which have been recommended in certain circumstances by the American Medical Association. In his response, Clark called birth control “synthetic,” as opposed to pregnancy, which he called “natural.”
The social media trend of attacking birth control has also coincided with legal and legislative efforts targeting access to birth control, particularly emergency contraception. In response to the Supreme Court ruling striking down the constitutional right to abortion, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that the court “should reconsider” other decisionsincluding those that codify the right of access to contraceptive methods.
Jones, who is also a YouTube creator with 1.2 million subscribers, has made several videos addressing the rhetoric around reproductive health. In an interview, he said the main tactic he’s seen on social media to undermine birth control has been to “run a study that backs up what they’re saying, and then use that to draw some outlandish conclusion.”
“It’s lightly veiled, but veiled enough that the average person often doesn’t identify it,” he said.
Many videos point to a 2018 study who found an association between taking hormonal contraceptives and suicide and suicide attempts in women in Denmark. But researchers and doctors who have cited the study have urged patients not to stop using hormonal contraceptives. Rather, health care experts have said that doctors should discuss with patients any potential effects of the drug on mood, as other studies have done. contradicted the 2018 study, and pregnancy can also have side effects on mood.
Ashley St. Clair, who has more than 673,000 followers on Twitter, addressed the association suggested in the study in a tweet, saying: “Did you know that the birth control pill increases the risk of suicide and suicidal ideation?” In June, Twitter owner Elon Musk liked several anti-birth control tweets, including St. Clair’s tweet.
Jones said the 2018 Dutch study on suicide and hormonal birth control was “really important and well done.”
But he said that just reading the 2018 study abstract and drawing conclusions from that alone lacks crucial context when making medical decisions. Mainly, he said, the risks of contraceptive use don’t compare to the same risks in pregnancy, which he said are higher. The 2018 study specifically acknowledges that pregnancy is also associated with higher rates of suicide.
In a phone interview, St. Clair said she believes women are being given birth control at a young age without being informed about the risks of depression and suicidal thoughts.
“I was in it at 14 years old and they didn’t tell me these things,” he said. “I really think there needs to be more education for women around this.”
Similarly, Clark wrote in his response to NBC News that he wants patients to be “radically considered” when making medical decisions.
“That starts with understanding potential side effects, not minimizing them,” he wrote.
Jones tells her own social media audience to consider the motivation of people posting about birth control online. Often, they come from a religious or political perspective, or are trying to sell something, she said, adding that they are neglecting the scientific consensus in favor of alarmist sentiment. She noted that the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has recommended make birth control available without a prescription to anyone.
“There is a huge amount of data on this,” he said. “If birth control is safe enough to recommend being over the counter, there is absolutely no reason why it should start to become a matter of legislation about who can access it and why.”
Still, Jones said, the way research on the side effects of birth control is weaponized by influential conservatives has an effect in the real world.
She said it’s a daily occurrence for women in her practice to refuse to use hormonal contraceptives for fear it will cause permanent changes to their bodies and fertility.
“You’re basically scaring people away from using birth control and not even comparing it to pregnancy,” Jones said.
Instead of birth control, he said, many conservatives have followed the lead of the natural health community and promoted cycle tracking and other fertility awareness methods. Several of the conservative women influencers write and share articles for Evie Magazine, a media company whose founder also created a cycle tracking startup called 28 by Evie. Conservative billionaire tech titan Peter Thiel has invested in the startup and more recently in fertility companies targeting international markets. During her interview, St. Clair also suggested that women should be taught to track their cycles as an alternative to birth control medications.
But, Jones said, fertility awareness methods to prevent pregnancy could fail “even in the most experienced person.” They require taking your temperature every day before you get out of bed, monitoring your cervical mucus and knowing exactly what to look for, keeping track of all these things on a chart, and avoiding sex or using another method to prevent pregnancy within the fertile window. she said.
According to the mayo clinic, fertility cycle tracking is among the least effective types of birth control, and that effectiveness varies by couple. She said that up to 24 out of 100 women using natural family planning will become pregnant within the first year. TO study 2021 of period tracking apps for fertility planning found that of the 10 apps used, all gave conflicting fertility dates, most of which were incorrect.
“People get pregnant because they didn’t know they had to do all these things for it to be effective,” he said.
