av mirssan Daily Eighty-Six Years of Editorial Freedom 420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, MI 48104 Choosing alternatives to the pill Saturday, April 10, 1976 News Phone: 764-0552 Edited and-managed by students at the University of Michigan By WARREN E. LEARY RECENT REPORTS of new dangers linked to birth con- trol pills have caused concern among women and prompted a few of them to switch to other means of contraception, doctors say. But the pill remains the most popular method by far of preventing pregnancy. "There may be a little switch- ing, but it is not marked," said Dr. Robert E. Rogers, a gyne- cologist and professor at Indiana University Medical School in In- dianapolis. "The pill is still their first choice and is likely to re- main so for some time." Interviews with 20 doctors, in- cluding gynecologists and ob- stetricians, and other experts on contraception reveal that wom- en are asking more questions about the pill and showing more, interest in daphragms and con- doms. Some doctors said the increas- ed availability of abortion had made women more willing to risk pregnancy and therefore more willing to switch from the pill, which has the lowest fail- ure rate of any contraceptive. THERE ARE NO statistics available on how many women use each type of contraception. The Food and Drug Administra- tion estimates, however, that 10 million women - a little more than 10 per cent of the coun- try's total female population - take birth control pills while about 3.2 million use IUDs; in- trauterine devices. In recent weeks, studies in Kentucky and California tied the pills to dramatically increased risk of liver tumors - some malignant - in one-time users. At the same time, three major drug companies, at the FDA's request, agreed to stop making secuential oral contraceptives which were linked to increased risk of cancer of the uterus lining andablood clotting. The FDA estimated that sequential nills were used by 5 to 10 per cent of the women taking oral contraceptives. Doctors and others say public- itv about the pill has a small imoact on its use. "THE PILL HAS had a high use when it was invented and remains high," said Robin El- liott, director of information and education for the Planned Par- enthood Federation of America. Elliott said that pills have ac- counted for between 75 and 80 per cent of the contraceptives dispensed by Planned Parent- hood in the last five years. "There appear to be small variations whenever a sidy ef- fect gets publicity," he said, ad- ding that women now are show- ing increased interest in dia- phragms. "In calling around to centers, I find there is a distinguishable, but slight trend upward for the diaphragm, particularly among younger, more educated wom- en ... If asked why, I'd prob- ably have to say it was due to recent disclosures about pills and IUDs." 'Most women are ask- ing reasonably intelli- gent questions about birth control, mostly "This has changed drastical- ly in the last 15 years, and more so in recent years," Coch- rane continues. "They knew almost nothing about birth con- trol before, but now I'd say they're pretty well informed." The doctors also said they spend more time explaining birth control. "In the past, wo- men would ask for the pill and I'd give it to them," said Dr., John Grover, a gynecologist at Massachusetts General Hospi- tal in Boston. "Studies that re- vealed side effects have made us think very carefully now about selecting patients for the pill. I now acquaint them with the side effects and let them know if the pill is for them." Elliott said Planned Parent- hood makes "every effort to provide the latest information. because there have effective methods are asking for reassurance on the availa- bility of abortion in case of failure," he said. Lynn Heidelberg, director of the Feminist Women's Health Center in Los Angeles, report- ed increased regularity of dia- phragms and added:'"One as- pect of deciding is the attitude toward abortion." Contracep- tive manufacturers declined to give specific production figures and had differing views on trends. A SPOKESMAN FOR the Ortho Divison of Johnson and Johnson, a major pill manufac- turer, said: "We can't give out specific figures for business reasons. But I can say we have no statistics that would show a trend either way about uses of the pill." Donald Hanlon, corporate con- troller for Syntex Laboratories of Palo Alto, Calif., a major pill manufacturer, said: "Gen- erally speaking for the oral contraceptive industry, total markets have been relatively stable in the United States." Deborah Bing, a spokesman for Julius Schmid Laboratories, a leading maker of diaphragms,? IUDs and condoms, said "Con- doms seem to be quite popular and because of this, we've come out with three new ones in the last year and a half. Part of the reason is that many states now permit over-the-counter sales and they are more avail- able. Also, condoms are pro- moted in anti-VD campaigns because they are the only con- traceptive effeqtive for this al- so. There are indications that IUDs are still more popular than diaphragms, though sales of both increased in the past year. Sales of diaphragms have increased somewhat, but we can't be sure of the reasons why." Philip Frank, marketing di- rector for Holland - Rantos Co., Inc., a major supplier of dia- phragnms, said there is evidence of "method hopping" by wo- men. "There has been an in-1 men. "There has been an in- creae in diaphragm sales of perhaps 30 to 35 per cent in the last two or three years," Frank said. "This isn't a temporary increase, but a growing inter- est by the public in the dia- phragm." Warren Leary is a science writer for the Associated Press. been a lot of things in the media about the 0 problems. This has changed drastic the last 15 years more so ini years. They kne most nothing birth control b '2ON'Y G0 AWAY, NOW-I MAY BBACKAFTER C Ne E1'ON. Purity: Racist catchword? but now they're ty well informe TiHE NATIONAL R System for FamilyF Services, part of 'theT Center for Health Statist reported a slight trend younger women toward phram. Its finding is b statistics covering betw million and three milli en, many of them under many of them poor. The system said that 73.1 per cent of the wom received contraceptive clinics and other outletst chose the pill as their1 birth control method. Ju 15 per cent chose the 1 per cent picked diaph 4.3 per cent used foams per cent condoms. In 1974, 76.3 pertcent c pill, 12 per cent the IUE cent diaphragms, 4.7 p foam and 1.3 per cent c Preliminary figures 1 show 75.7 per cent pick pill, 0.6 per cent the I per cent diaphragms per cent condoms. SEVERAL DOCTOR; women have become n formed about contracep "Most women are ask sonably intelligent q about birth control, mo cause there have beenf things in the media ab problems," said Dr. Pau rane of Fitchburg, Mass .y i "FOR INSTANCE, a recent ally in study said women over 40 had S (and increased risk of heart attack with the pill. Because the data recent wasn't in, we didn't tell women this six months ago, but we sure ew al- do tell them now. If we didn't, about they'd certainly ask." Neither the American Medi- ef ore, cal Association, the American College of Obstetrics and Gynle- pret- cology nor 'the Academy of Family Physicians has guide- lines on what doctors should tell patients about contracep- tion. Dr. William Barclay, sen- ior AMA vice president, said eporting that physicians are presumed Planning to have sufficient knowledge to National make their own decisions on ics, also what to tell patients about birth among control. the dia- The FDA has proposed new ased on labeling for pills and IUDs, the een two contraceptives requiring a doc- on wom- tor's prescription. The labeling r 25 and would require that patients get written information on the ef- in 1973, fectiveness, side effects and nen who proner use of each contracep- s from tie. checked "The freedom to choose a primary contracentive is every woman's ust over right." says FDA Commission- UD. 3.3 er Ale-ander .M. Schmidt. raghms. "This freedom cannot exist, s and .8 however, unless the woman her- self ran weigh the conrarative hose the henefits and ricks . . . and thus D, 3 per bnrnn-rlv informed todecide er cent with her nhvician the best ;ondoms. choice for her." EARLIER THIS WEEK, presidential hopeful Jimmy Carter promised that if elected president he would not discourage maintaining "ethnic purity" of "established neighbor- hoods." Carter later apologized for using the phrase "ethnic purity." Two days elapsed between the state- ment and the apology. To quote Morris Udall, "there is no 'place in this land for thinly veiled hints of the politics of racial divi- sion." Apparently in an effort to keep his broad spectrum of support, Carter subtly lent encouragement to those who choose to keep neighborhoods racially segregated. His choice of words conjures up memories of the ideology that has found voice in George Wallace, Orville Faubus and other southern governors., In short, 'ethnic purity' sounds like racism. And more important than Carter's choice of words is the content of his "ethnic purity" remarks. The right of minorities to decent housing should be a higher priority than maintaining the racial identity of neighborhoods. Carter should be more concerned with the economic disadvantages of black people-who TODAY'S STAFF: News: Dana Baumann, Jay Levin, Jeff Ristine, Tim Schick, Jim Tobin Editorial Page: Marc Basson, Stephen Hersh, Steve Kursman, Jon Pan- sius, Tom Stevens Arts Page: David Blomquist Photo Technician: Pauline Lubens LISTEN TO WHAT INDEPENDENT STUDIES SAY ABOUT THE IRS: 5,1 for 1975 ing the UD, 3.4 and 1.7 tS SAID nore in- tion. ing rea- uestions stly be- a lot of out the ul Coch- s. QOME PATTENTS considering ,.., switching from the nill to ls sre methods of birth con- trol ask abolit abortion. 'Availability of abortion has gien wrnmen the freedom of i~nn other methods of contra- cention and thev, ask about it," s-id Grover. "Them may not UkP the hniro, bt at least thev k-now thev hv habortion to fall bn"k n if they don't w.nt a child." Tn Tndiaunnols, R o g e r s agreed. "Patients going to less The Lighter Si de: 3,Selling the candidates: Carter with fluoristan Dick West WASHINGTON (UPI) - The Washington Press Club's pro- gram this week featured a panel discussion on "Selling Presiden- tial Candidates on TV." I wasn't there, so I don't know what techniques the panel members recommended. But several possibilities spring to mind. SPOT ONE: Two women, one young, the other in the wisdom of her middle years, are pushing grocery carts through a super- market. They meet in the canned fruit aisle. "What's wrong, Mmmmm? You seem to dull and listless. Is occasional irregularity getting you down?" "No, it isn't irregularity; it's the presidential candidate I'm backing. He doesn't make the issues sharp and clear. With my candidate, the issues come out all fuzzy and glossed over." The older woman smiles knowingly, reaches into her shop- ping bag and extracts a Henry Jackson campaign button. "HERE. TRY MINE." "Scoop Jackson, eh? Does he explain the issues so that they become pointed and well-defined?" "Believe me, Marge. Switch to Jackson and you'll never again have to worry about your candidate obscuring the issues." SPOT TWO: A pornographic movie theater. Two bald-headed men in raincoats in the front row stafig intently at the screen. During a particularly passionate sequence, one man turns to the other. "What does your presidential candidate say about resuming military aid to Egypt?" he asks sotto voice. The other man looks around furtively and cups a hand to his mouth. "Well, my candidate is Morris Udall, and Morris Udall says ..." Other members of the audience immediately lose interest in the film and lean forward to try to catch the rest of the com- ment. Then we hear an off-camera voice. "WHEN MORRIS UDALL speaks, people listen." SPOT THREE: A western landscape. A lone figure walking down a ravine. A camera zooms in and we see it is President Ford. He unwraps a stick of gum. and puts it in his mouth. Suddenly we hear the thunder of hoofbeats. A large herd of bulls comes stampeding down the ravine. Ford starts to flee but stumbles over his own feet. When the dust settles, he is nowhere to be seen. An off-camera voice is heard as the hoofbeats fade in the dis- tance. "Ronald Reagan is bullish on America." SPOT FOUR: Meanwhile, back at the supermarket, Jimmy Carter, who is campaigning in the shopping center, stops in for a bag of peanuts. Several women rush over and throw their arms around him. Attracted by the clamor, the manager, a fussy little man, runs up. "LADIES, LADIES," he implores. "Please don't squeeze the candidate." "But, Mr. Whipple," they squeal. "His campaign promises are so sensitive we can't resist it." Dick West is a syndicated columnist for UPI. Carter Unrest plagues Asia seem to be the object of Carter's comment - than with neighborhood preservation. FACED WITH THE prospect of "practice what you preach," many Northern "liberals" changed their stance. Some of the very peo- ple who journeyed south to march with Sedgar Evers and Martin Luth- er King began signing petitions against busing. The suburbs had be- come a dreamy escape from the shortcomings of American society, and the prospect of long-run reality was very frightening. The best alternative to busing - one which will be more stable and effective in the long run - is inte- grated neighborhoods, with children attending neighborhood schools. THERE'S A 25% CHANCE THEY'LL GIVE YOU THE WRONG ANSWER TO A QUESTION.. Editor's Note: This copy was compiled by the Pacific News Service from files by its report- ers throughout Asia. Inside is a regular feature of PNS. BATANGAS, PHILIPPINES, (PNS) -- The killing of the son of a leading Philippine family here has reminded this coun- try that relations between land- lords and tenants are still marked by violence, despite a land reform law passed three years ago. Cicente Padilla, son of a pow- erful former senator and a land- lord, was pressuring his ten- ant to accept a deal and move off the land so he could con- vert it to a vineyard. After the tenant, Marcelo de Mesa, filed a complaint in the local Court of Agrarian Reform, he says, Padilla stormed into his yard firing a gun and threatening to kill him. De Mesa and his neigh- bors say they disarmed Padil- la and shot him with his own gun. VIENTIANE, LAOS - Facing a food shortage aggravated when Thailand closed its bor- der with Laos last winter, Vi- entiane is sprouting vegetable gardens. Tended by government officials, school children, secre- taries and shopowners, the gar- dens fill every available space -along ditches, around pago- das, in front of government buildings. The new govern- ment's longrange plans for food self sufficiency include chicken farms, fisheries and reclama- tion of uncultivated land. FALDIVES - As Britain winds up its military presence here this month, Indian Ocean neighbors worry that the U. S. may take over the British air base on Gan. The British base has been important to the econ- omy of this island nation, which centers on fish and coconut. Ob- servers believe the pressure to find a new source of income may have induced the govern- ment to make a secret deal with the U. S. allowing use of the base at least until the larg- er base on Diego Garcia be- comes fully operational. A coup last year overthrew the leftist prime minister, who had called for rapid dismantling of the base. i 1 To The Daily:- SINCE THE BEGINNING of the academic school year we have been working to establish the Sociology Undergraduate Association. Our most funda- mental concern has been to generatecmore student and pro- fessional interest in our depart- ments undergraduate program in a congenial way. We have long believed that undergradu- ates throughout the university have suffered from a signifi- cant lack of direction and co- hesion, while the faculty ap- pears apathetic in light of such educational cancers. One integral feature of our activity this year has been to administer course evaluations in all sociology classes. Recent- ly our organization istied a memorto the sociology faculty informing them of these plans. Letters was never our intent, this has been acknowledged as a legiti- mate objection. However, when the issue is more intimately examined we feel that such an objection obscures a rudimen- tary issue. It is the foremost conviction' of the Socialogy Undergraduate Association that students should play a primary role in the con- struction and administration of the evaluation instrument. Fur- thermore, we strongly believe that all data obtained from these evaluations be made pub- lic for inspection by students and faculty alike. After all, who is is that pays the salaries of the faculty? Should we not have a voice in the adminis- trative policies that govern our education, or should we say our non-education? FOR TOO - LONG students have been co-opted when at- to The Thercfore, we re that next fall all un ate (especially thes psychology and politica student .associations)a uate student associatio a full scale campaign timize a student orien dent conducted evalua gram which will pern departments of this in It is hoped that suchz of evaluation will h mote and unite student ulty concerns at thi sity. commend dergradu- sociology, al science Daily ers, etc. to rank students against other students in the class. AND A 70% CHANCE THEY'LL BE WRONG WHEN PREPARING A RETURN! 6 1 -ON N I AND A 100% CHANCE THE ERRORS WILL BE IN THEIR FAVOR! and grad-. Certainly a high grade should ns launch indicate mastery of material n to legi- and achievement of course ob- nted, stu- jectives; when high grades are ation pro- given without rigorous testing meate all of whether mastery of material nstitution. has been achieved, the grading a method system has been abused. How- help pro- ever, we should not allow our t and fac- desire to make the grading sys- s univer- tem "meaningful" to interfere with the major objective of our teaching - to help every stu- dent to learn as much as he can. If the transcript lists the mittee, average course grade in order rfraduate to allow the ranking, it is equiv- alent to grading on the curve. Such an approach eliminates (or reduces) the possibility that grades teacher and students work to- gether to achievednew levels of effectiveness and cooDerstion Larry Wilson Rick Adler Steering Comm Sociology Unde Association cess. If various groups in so- ciety need people ranked, let them administer their own tests outside the University (e.g., as MCAT for premeds, etc.). But within the University, let's give ourselves every chance to cre- ate an ideal atmosphere for learning. Our present. grading system allows individual teach- ers an dstudents the freedom to choose a cooperative approach to learning; we stronely oppose any change that would tend to force all of us to abandon such st-Proaches in order to deal with the very real problem of "grade inflation." We believe that the cause of "grade infla- tion" is the failure to require excellent performance for an e'rcellent grade. The solution therefore should be to establish rigorous standards and stick to them. The rank of a student a course as wo'uld effective- To The Daily: