Natural birth control method easier to promote, says population officer

TACLOBAN CITY, Leyte, Philippines—Amid the heated and often emotional debates over reproductive health, the population officer of this city has expressed preference for teaching the Church-backed natural family planning method more than the government-supported artificial methods.

Population officer Ceilito Esquibel on Friday said instructing couples about the natural birth control method would be easier because she would not have to work with medical workers to do so. Esquibel said her office did not have medical staff who she could consult on the risks and side effects of contraceptives like birth control pills and IUD.

But by teaching the natural method, Esquibel said she would only have to brief couples on when or when not to have sexual intimacy.

“In a natural planning method, all we have to do is to teach them for example when the woman is fertile or not. In the artificial method, such as using pills, there could be some contra-indication to (the birth control drug),” Esquibel said.

Esquibel, however, stressed that her office could give information to couples interested in artificial birth control methods.

She said her preference for teaching the natural method was based on practical concerns, i.e. the lack of medical consultants for her office, and had nothing to do with the stand of the Catholic Church.

“It is just that we find teaching the natural family method easy to teach. We don’t need to refer the couples to a health center or a clinic for them to get more information,” she said.

Esquibel, however, admitted that using the natural birth control method would pose certain challenges, especially in so far as the couples trying to discipline themselves and stick to the schedule.

“Resorting to the natural method really requires discipline and cooperation among couples. To me, it is the best method but the most difficult to practice,” she said.

Tacloban has the highest population growth rate in Eastern Visayas at 2.72 percent, records from the city population office show. The region has a population growth rate of only 1.12 percent.

Based on the 2007 population census, Tacloban has 217,199 inhabitants. –Joey A. Gabieta, Inquirer Visayas