Birth control has always been a hot topic among the mass. Not only in today’s world but people from ancient ages were curious and concerned about it. That’s exactly what gave rise to some ancient methods of birth control that might have been less helpful yet hurting.
Ladies back then, literally used something starting from elephant’s dung to crocodile’s poop in their vagina to prevent conceiving.
Apart from this only, they used to drink deadly toxic heavy metals that we now know certainly exposes one’s health into fatal consequences.
For example, drinking mercury, liquid lead and arsenic that are considered toxic for humans.
So, women were struggling but you need to know what these struggles for birth control included exactly?
Just hinting it here, there are some other wicked and unhygienic things women preferred using for birth control that nobody uses now.
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10 ANCINET METHODS OF BIRTH CONTROL
Women before birth control movement- an important factor of feminist movement used to rely on home remedies to prevent unwanted pregnancies.
They would use oral contraceptives made from heavy metals, spices and other unusual ingredients in order to block the sperm before reaching its aim.
Besides, the history of birth control never had been out of the dark.
Thereupon, learn about the 10 ancient ways of contraception that women often used in the old days.
1. USING QUEEN ANNE’S LACE
Queen Anne’s lace which is also considered as a wild carrot has been used as an effective way to prevent pregnancy for thousands of years.
For preventing conception, its seeds are taken for seven days after having unproductive sexual intercourse.
Ancient people believed that it prevented fertilized eggs from implanting in the womb.
Many ancient Greek physicians including Hippocrates had prescribed this flower’s seed as a contraceptive.
However, ingesting parts of this plant can be highly toxic for some people and it chemically resembles hemlock- which is highly toxic.
2. DRINKING TOXIC HEAVY METALS
For goodness’s sake, we now know that heavy metals including mercury, lead and arsenic aren’t for us, at least for consuming orally.
But the ancient people didn’t, and they used to drink these substances in order to prevent pregnancy.
Civilizations holding Egyptians, Assyrians, Chinese and Greek women were fond of using this ancient method of birth control.
However, drinking these substances can certainly expose one to face consequences including kidney and lung failure together with brain damage.
But fortunately, women who used these substances were aware of the quantity for the consumption to be unable to conceive but not to get poisoned.
3. SNEEZING AFTER INTERCOURSE
Soranus, a Greek gynecologist had suggested sneezing as a way to expel semen from the woman’s vagina.
According to him, the soon a man ejaculates, the woman must hold her breath up and draw away a little to hamper the semen from being hurled too deep into the vagina.
Afterwards, she must get up and squat down instantly as well as induce sneezing.
After a good pressure by sneezing, the semen must get out of the vagina and the woman must wipe her genital area as carefully as possible.
And only Soranus and the women who underwent this process knew how much this weird trick worked.
4. ACACIA AND HONEY
Acacia, honey and the mixture of ground dates had been listed as one of the most effective ancient methods of birth control.
This method of controlling pregnancy was widely used among Egyptian and Mesopotamia women.
In this method, women would mix up acacia fruit, honey with grounded dates and soak a piece of cotton or any plant fiber in that paste.
After that, they would insert it in their vagina as like a tampon.
This method worked as a spermicidal.
5. INSERTING OF DUNG IN VAGINA
Certainly, insertion of dung in vagina is the most bizarre and unhygienic method one could ever do to prevent pregnancy.
Ideally, hygiene would have been just a word when women had to face pregnancy on a yearly basis. Isn’t that true?
Women from ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia would mix crocodile dung with other ingredients to form a pessary- a block to insert in the vagina.
But that’s not all.
Women from ancient India and the Middle East used to use elephant dung in the same way to prevent conception.
6. USAGE OF SILPHIUM
Population of ancient Minoa, Egypt, Rome and Greece loved silphium.
Silphium- a funnel like plant was widely used for bloating problems, enhancing food’s taste, perfumes and of course as a contraceptive.
Thereupon, it became extinct.
As for the prevention of pregnancy, women would drink the heart-shaped seed of this flower as a form of juice once a month as a natural contraceptive.
Plus, they were even familiar with inserting wool or cotton in vagina soaked in silphium’s juice.
These processes naturally prevent unwanted pregnancies.
7. UTILIZATION OF OLIVE OIL
Another form of preventing pregnancy in ancient times was the utilization of olive or cedar oils in the genital area.
And this method was proposed by Aristotle.
Massaging these oils in genital area was believed to slow down sperm mobility after having sex.
So, women would get themselves time to douche after sexual intercourse for inhibiting pregnancy.
8. DOUCHING THE VAGINA
Douching is a popular process not only these days but also in ancient times.
But the only thread that differentiates douching from the modern world to ancient ages is its way of usage.
Now douches are only used for freshness purpose while it was used for preventing conception in older days.
For douching in ancient times, seawater, vinegar and lemon juice were vastly used.
But worse, women were familiar with using cleaning agents like Lysol to rinse their vagina which was completely unsafe.
9. USAGE OF LEMON
Lemon- who doesn’t like it in drinks and foods?
But using it in vagina to prevent pregnancy is nothing but horrible.
Back then in ancient times, people presumed citric acid in lemon to have spermicidal properties.
Thus, women were habituated to using lemons as an ancient birth control method.
They would soak sponges or cotton in lemon water and insert the soaked material into their vagina.
In addition, ancient people used to rub a mixture of honey with lemon juice on the contraceptive sponge for extra protection against conception.
10. ANCIENT CONDOMS
Usage of condoms is one of the most popular methods of avoiding conception still its initiation was a literal disgust.
The first known condom around 1600 was made from animal membranes likewise from the bladders and intestines.
It’s possible that they used muscle tissues as well from the dead combatants for making it but there are no studies to support this claim.
At first, condoms were used for preventing the spread of certain diseases.
So, these are some of the 10 wicked ancient methods of birth control that women actually used.
Some of the ingredients that women used for birth control also include
- Juniper berries
- Ghee
- Tree seeds
- Salt
- Rock salt
- Condoms made from silk or plants
- Sponges made from bamboo, moss or glass
- Pomegranate seed
- Blue chough
- Unripe papaya
Now have a glance over the ways of birth control and bless yourself for being born in this generation.
MODERN BIRTH CONTROL METHODS
The following ones are the modern birth control methods for both men and women.
- Progestin-only pills
- Injections
- Implants
- Contraceptive patches
- Combines hormone pills
- Condoms
- Intrauterine device (IUD)
- Spermicidal
- Diaphragms
- Condoms for women
- Sponges
- Vaginal rings
- Sterilization (tubal ligation and vasectomy)
Other than that, people are getting aware about birth control methods that don’t require any procedures at all.
For example, fertility awareness based methods (FAMS), withdrawal (Pull out method) and outer course (sexual intercourse without penetration) are getting reorganization.
So, women are no more using any of the ancient methods of birth control.
LAST WORDS FROM PREGARLYBODY
Things are changing and things are changing fast. And we hope the changes continue for a better future.
Women through ages have been suffering issues that people were not even debating upon.
Moreover, becoming pregnant on a yearly basis was fairly common and definitely wreaked havoc on women’s health.
So, they used what they had. And they did anything that they could possibly have done. No offense to say that.
Thereupon, two shout outs here.
First shoutout to women from ancient ages for stepping out from yearly pregnancies.
And shoutout to modern science for making the modern birth control methods clearer and easier.
