Women’s choice of reproduction is an important part to women’s health. Women have the right to have a safe birthing option as well as available birth control options. Women should have the freedom to not be sterilized and abortions should be available to them. I shadowed an OB/GYN this summer and saw many women who wanted to be sterilized. Some of their reasons were health related due to many natural vaginal child births and some just wanted to prevent pregnancy. There are some places in the world where women are sterilized against their will. Native Americans and women with mental disabilities were forced into sterilization in the 1970’s (315). The women did not give consent and in some cases there was a language barrier.
Childbirth in the present day is not as dangerous as it used to be. Hospitals used to be one of the most dangerous places to give birth because the doctors were not forced to wash their hands between cases. This led to infection and death of many newborns. Hospitals also used to make the child birthing experience a painful one. Women were strapped down, feet in stirrups, and pubic areas completely shaved (317). Now women have a greater say in their child birth. They do not have to take medicine. Their arms are not strapped down. They have a say in the way they will give birth.
Although there have always been ways of birth control available, only in present day are they easily accessible forms of birth control. There are many different types such as IUD, birth control pills, hysterectomy, etc. Birth control methods were banned under the Comstock Law because they were assumed obscene. Women realized this compromised their freedom because they were forced into motherhood (319). Childbirth compromises your health, especially when women are pregnant over and over.
Abortion is a very controversial issue in America. The issue lies between the women’s rights and the child’s rights. Pro-life advocates are for life in any decision. They believe that life is more important than the woman’s rights. Pro-choice advocates believe that women should have the right to choose whether they want to have an abortion or not. Pro-life politicians often suggest higher budgets for women’s clinics (325). Roe vs. Wade was the most important court case in the issue of abortion. The decision was that a fetus does not have rights as a human has rights. Furthermore, when the women’s health is jeopardized, her life must be first taken into account.
Another issue that is important in women’s health is the threats that affect women. Most women may think that breast cancer is the number one cause of death among women. However, the actual number one killer is heart disease. It is important that women understand this because heart disease can be prevented by avoiding smoking, a healthy diet, and exercise (305). Cancer is the second highest cause of death among women. This could also be prevented by healthy diet and exercise. It is also important that women know how to check themselves for lumps in their breast and attend an OB/GYN regularly to check for HPV and uterine cancer.
