By Paige Botjer—

What if women didn’t have to worry about birth control pills every month? What if males didn’t have to worry about wrapping themselves up before sex? I’m sure many sexually active adults have thought about this more than once. It would be nice just to have a single pill to take right before intimacy. Well, if this idea sounds appealing to you, it might soon be becoming a reality.

More choices are coming. Freedom vs. daily dose.  Any way you take it, know the risks.

It’s called pre-coital birth control. It’s essentially an oral contraceptive that the female would take twenty-four hours in advance of having sex. Think about it ladies, this type of pill would eliminate the need for a daily pill. That means no more reminders in our phones that we usually forget about anyway. And supposedly, by taking this type of birth control, the female is safe from pregnancy.

It works the same way that Plan B does only has a smaller dosage which is actually healthier for the woman using it. The National Institute of Health says that this type of pill would not have the harsh side effects of Plan B or even the daily birth control pill. This pill could still, however, mess with your menstrual cycle.

Seems too good to be true? Well research shows that this type of birth control might actually be less effective as taking the pill every month but might be just as effective as condoms. Another downside of this pill is, how many of us actually plan out our sex life at least twenty-four hours in advance? That takes a bit of the spontaneity out of it.

Now let’s be clear, this method of birth control, although it gives the user much more freedom does not protect against STDs, AIDS, or really anything. The only method to date that protects a sexually active person is condoms. As Jessica Herman of Cosmopolitian Magazine writes, “The fact that you don’t have to take the pericoital pill every day is certainly a plus…[but] you’re better off preventing an unwanted pregnancy by relying on your tried and true daily dose or IUD.” And since these pills are still in the developing stage in a laboratory somewhere, let’s all remember that condoms are cheaper than diapers.