The case in summary: Young girls are influenced by influencers on social media to drop hormonal contraception and instead follow their own menstrual cycle. Pharmacies are selling less contraceptives with hormones, while the number of abortions is increasing, which health professionals believe is a clear connection. Many young people are skeptical about using artificial substances in the body and are afraid of side effects such as acne, weight gain and reduced sex drive. Section leader at the gynecology outpatient clinic at Ullevål Hospital, Tine Sande, believes there is a connection between increased abortion numbers and a decline in sales of hormonal contraception. Ullevål hospital does not have the capacity to receive everyone who needs help with an abortion, and some weeks they carry out 70 abortions. Sande believes that this contraceptive trend is setting women back many decades and that young girls have not caught on to the battle women won in the 60s, which led to us being able to use contraception. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAI. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – Let’s go back to nature, back to self-awareness and back to our superpower. That’s what a girl tells her over 70,000 followers on TikTok. She is not the only one. On social media, videos abound where girls give advice to each other. Advice on, among other things, following your own menstrual cycle, instead of using contraception. – Influencers talk about how wonderful life is without hormonal contraception, says Tine Sande. She is section leader and nurse at the gynecology outpatient clinic at Ullevål Hospital. Abortion numbers are increasing Sande says that many young people follow what influencers do. SKEPTICISM: – Social media creates skepticism about contraception among young people, believes nurse Tine Sande. Photo: Privat This also applies to the decision not to use contraception, which is being taken by more and more people. Pharmacies sell less contraception with hormones. This is shown by figures from the Pharmacy Association. At the same time, more people are having abortions, according to Ullevål hospital. Sande believes there is a clear connection between this. – Social media creates skepticism about contraception among young people. They do not want to put anything artificial in their body, and are afraid of side effects such as acne, weight gain and reduced sex drive. Many people would rather take the risk, says Sande. And if they do get pregnant, they’d rather have an abortion. This worries several people at the outpatient clinic. – We are concerned and sorry for this trend. She would like young people to understand the consequences of what they do when they choose not to use contraception. Ullevål hospital does not have capacity for everyone The fact that more and more people are having abortions means that Ullevål hospital is unable to accept everyone who needs help. Some weeks they carry out 70 abortions. – We are unable to help those who do not belong to Ullevål hospital, as we could before. In the whole of last year, they carried out 2,200 abortions. Up to November this year alone, they have carried out 2,155. Refuse to use hormonal contraception Another person who also notices that young people refuse to use hormonal contraception is Ingvild Endestad. She is head of politics and communication in Sex and society. INFLUENCED: Young people allow themselves to be influenced by what they see in videos, also about contraception, says Ingvild Endestad. Photo: Xenia Villafranca – Many young people do not get the information they need from health personnel and are left to the stories of individuals, she says and adds: – When it comes to health care, it is not the case that what suits your friend suits you. The girls Sex and society talk to say that they allow themselves to be influenced by the videos. Endestad believes that social media spreads a lot of misinformation about contraception. She still believes that something must be done about the abortion services that exist today. – Whatever the reason for the rise in abortion numbers, we have to deal with the fact that there are more people who need abortions. Abortion services must be expanded. “Natural” sex Part of the trend that abounds is to measure the temperature under the tongue in the morning, and then follow recommendations in an app. The apps then tell you whether it is safe or not to have unprotected sex that day. Many call it “natural” sex. It’s about lying down without either pills, IUDs, plasters or rubber. TikTok user @bymariavillaman, who has over 50,000 followers, talks a lot about what she believes is problematic with contraception. She believes that women have been let down by the birth control pill, and that there is not enough talk about the side effects of hormones. – There are a large number of drugs that not only change your brain, but also have a number of negative side effects that are normalised, she says. Back to the 60s Nurse Tine Sande believes that the contraceptive trend is setting women back many decades. She believes young girls have not caught on to the battle women won in the 60s, which led to us being able to use contraception. – The fight meant that we can lie around without getting pregnant. It is a freedom, she says and adds: – You know as well as I do that the consequence of lying down is getting pregnant, and if you want to be an independent woman you have to protect yourself. Hey you! 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Selling less contraception, while more people have abortions: – Let’s go back to nature
