Mackensie Loyd Loyd 1

Dr. Whitener

English 102

January 31, 2023

Jessica Kiley, Northwestern University’s assistant professor of obstetrics and

gynecology, in her viewpoint, “Let’s Take a Moment to Talk About the Good Side Effects of

Birth Control” (2014) argues that birth control is safe and beneficial to women’s health despite

the powerful headlines and personal experiences of individuals. Kiley develops her argument

using her credibility as a doctor and describing the different methods of contraceptives as well as

their benefits. She also mentions the ongoing political war against contraceptives taking her

argument to a higher level of confrontation. With her simple yet informative viewpoint, Kiley

targets women as a whole, especially those at an appropriate age for contraceptives.

One of Kiley’s points is that oral contraceptives help regulate menses, acne, treat

endometriosis, and even prevent certain ovarian and endometrial cancers. She also states, “Pills

are the most popular contraceptive in the United States, chosen by 27.5 percent of women who

use some form of birth control” (Kiley, paragraph 10). While this may be true, we also need to

look at the harmful side effects in order to make a truly informed decision about our body and

reproductive system. Kiley fails to mention any of these less-than-ideal side effects of oral

contraceptives. According to MedlinePlus, “Birth control pills (BCPs) contain man-made forms

of 2 hormones called estrogen and progestin” (line 1). And according to Evolve’s Pharmacology

and the Nursing Process, “research subjects who took estrogen-progestin combination products

were found to have an increased risk for breast cancer, heart disease, stroke, and blood clots”

(page 532). Kiley does not give any other examples of positive side effects of oral contraceptives

leaving it at the very basic knowledge that many women of reproductive age already know.
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Kiley continues to describe the positive side effects of an intrauterine device, or an IUD.

She claims, “IUDs, highly effective contraceptives that can last either five or 10 years,

depending on the type” (Kiley, paragraph 13). What Kiley fails to mention is that IUDs can

cause harm to not only your hormone balance but also your uterus as a whole. According to

SurgicalWatch’s article on Mirena, a brand of IUDs, “Among other risk factors, an ectopic

pregnancy is more likely to occur if the mother becomes pregnant while using an IUD and if the

mother has scar tissue in the female organs, which can occur with certain complications of the

Mirena IUD” (paragraph 5). Fertilized eggs have a difficult time latching on to scar tissue in the

uterus caused by IUDs. Women’s Health Specialists of California say, “The body's normal

reaction to a low-grade inflammation is to produce scar tissue to protect the area from infection.

This process can go on undetected by the woman. She may never feel pain or become ill, yet

damage to the uterus, tubes or ovaries is being done” (paragraph 7). Kiley does not mention any

of these important facts about IUDs in her viewpoint and continuously states that they are an

option for treating certain cancers. She says, “Furthermore, in certain women with precancers or

cancers of the endometrium, the levonorgestrel IUD is an option for treatment of these

conditions, and it is likely as effective as the standard oral medications used for decades” (Kiley,

paragraph 14). While yes, hormonal IUDs can become a treatment for certain cancers, she also

needs to make her readers aware of the ectopic pregnancies and scar tissue problems mentioned

earlier. Kiley does not mention any more positive side effects aside from how they can be used

as cancer and hormonal treatments.

Kiley’s final argument on the positives of birth control revolves around the shot and the

implant. She states nothing more than “Other birth control methods containing progestins, such

as the three-month shot and the three-year implant, also causes decreased menstrual bleeding.
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Women using the shot are very likely to stop having periods, a side effect they typically enjoy”

(Kiley, paragraph 16). After giving so much information about oral contraceptives and IUDs, her

argument about the shot and the implant should have continued further. She does not provide

very many facts about these two forms of birth control other than they slow, and sometimes even

stop, women’s periods. Dawn Stacey of VeryWell Health.com tells us “According to the Food

and Drug Administration, if Depo-Provera is used continuously for more than two years,

individuals are more prone to bone thinning, also known as oesteoperosis, and broken bones”

(paragraph 13). She continues on to say “Depo-Provera has a black box warning, which is a label

used to highlight serious medication risks, regarding this side effect” (paragraph 15). Depo-

Provera is a three-month birth control shot commonly used in the United States.

NEXPLANON, the most common form of implantable birth control states “If you

become pregnant while using NEXPLANON, you have a slightly higher chance that the

pregnancy will be ectopic (occurring outside the womb) than do women who do not use birth

control. Ectopic pregnancies can cause serious internal bleeding, infertility, and even death”. The

company goes on to also state “The use of NEXPLANON may also increase your chance of

serious blood clots, especially if you have other risk factors, such as smoking. If you smoke and

want to use NEXPLANON, you should quit. Some examples of blood clots are deep vein

thrombosis (legs), pulmonary embolism (lungs), retinal thrombosis (eyes), stroke (brain), and

heart attack (heart). It is possible to die from a problem caused by a blood clot, such as a heart

attack or stroke. Tell your doctor at least 4 weeks before if you are going to have surgery or will

need to be on bed rest, because you have an increased chance of getting blood clots during

surgery or bed rest” (Nexplanon, Important Safety Information). Kiley also fails to mention any

of these side effects in her viewpoint. She does state “Critics will try to emphasize the severity of
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the bad outcomes, such as blood clots on pills or ring, or they may bring up bad events from

decades ago, like pelvic infections with old IUDs no longer marketed. While this information is

important, it should not guide the headlines or the discussions. Rare is rare, and history is

history” (paragraph 17). She dismisses these serious findings as “history”, and then contradicts

herself by saying they are important.

During Kiley’s entire viewpoint, she fails to mention any of the less-than-appealing side

effects. She only informs us of the positives of each method of birth control. She ends her

viewpoint with “Knowledge is power, and in this case, knowledge is also good health” (Kiley).

She directly contradicts her argument with that statement. To make an informed decision about

our reproductive health, we must have complete knowledge of all options and methods. Kiley

claims “As a practicing obstetrician-gynecologist, I worry about the women who read these

stories and shy away from using much-needed contraception. For more than 10 years I've taken

care of women who safely use birth control” (paragraph 7). To safely use birth control you must

be aware and have some skepticism about the bad side effects. Kiley’s viewpoint only mentioned

the good side effects and blatantly disregarded and disagreed with credible medical studies. This

decreased her credibility as not only a practicing gynecologist but also a writer.
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Works Cited

Dawn Stacey, Ph.D. “9 Common Depo-Provera Side Effects.” Verywell Health, Verywell

Health, 5 Nov. 2022, https://www.verywellhealth.com/common-depo-provera-side-effects-

906709.

“IUD.” Womens Health Specialists, 7 Sept. 2016,

https://www.womenshealthspecialists.org/services/birth-control/iud/.

Jacobson, John D, et al. “Birth Control Pills: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia.”

MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 10 Jan. 2022,

https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/007460.htm.

Kiley, Jessica. “Resource Login for Off-Campus Access.” Let's Take a Moment to Talk

About the Good Side Effects of Birth Control, Gale in Context, 2014, https://go-gale-

com.libdata.lib.ua.edu/ps/retrieve.do?

tabID=Viewpoints&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchResultsType=SingleTab&hitC

ount=174&searchType=TopicSearchForm¤tPosition=6&docId=GALE

%7CEJ3010568279&docType=Viewpoint

%2Bessay&sort=Relevance&contentSegment=ZXAY-

MOD1&prodId=OVIC&pageNum=1&contentSet=GALE

%7CEJ3010568279&topicId=00000000LVVI&searchId=&userGroupName=tusc49521&i

nPS=true.

Lilley, Linda Lane, et al. “Women's Health Drugs.” Pharmacology and the Nursing

Process, Elsevier, St. Louis, MO, 2023, p. 532.

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“Mirena IUD Side Effects - Uterine Perforation, Infertility.” Surgical Watch | Surgical

Watch, 15 Aug. 2014, http://surgicalwatch.com/mirena-iud/side-effects/.

“NEXPLANON.” NEXPLANON® (Etonogestrel Implant) 68 Mg Radiopaque ǀ Official

Site, https://www.nexplanon.com/?

utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Nexplanon_UIB_UNBB_NA_E

NGM_EXCT_TEXT_FEMALE&utm_term=arm%2Bimplant%2Bbirth%2Bcontrol

%2Bside%2Beffects&utm_content=Safety

%2BInfo_V4&utm_kxconfid=sgaizzyx0&gclid=CjwKCAiAleOeBhBdEiwAfgmXf4XVp

LhS19cN1pod6JhcKReh8JW0zx6nQ98fcqOh1Q2bfbBAw90pDRoCCXAQAvD_BwE&g

clsrc=aw.ds.