The reproductive endocrinology of contraception

The provision of quality reproductive health services and education, access to reliable and safe contraception, and safe abortion services and post-abortion care, are important to empower women to achieve their goals and ambitions, avoid unwanted pregnancy and ensure any pregnancy occurs at the right time for them. The introduction of the first oral contraceptive pill in 1960 sparked a movement to put women in control of their sexual and reproductive health through the use of effective modern methods of contraception. A number of technological developments and advances in the understanding of hormones between the 1930s and 1950s made the first steps toward a hormonal contraception possible; understanding of the effects of steroid hormones was advanced, progesterone was characterized, and the first synthetic progestin (norethindrone/norethisterone) was developed.