Can Old Wives’ Tales Really Prevent Pregnancy? Myths That Still Travel Across Cultures.

The so-called ‘old wives’ of days of yore certainly seem to have had a lot of home-cooked wisdom, and many of these tales still have takeaways for the modern world. Other ‘old wives’ tales’, on the other hand, have less than proven efficacy and can even be harmful. And unfortunately, many of these myths still go unchallenged on social and mainstream media, as well as in day-to-day discourse. Naturally, one of the biggest areas of life these tales relate to is health, and none more so than pregnancy. So, can old wives’ tales really prevent an unwanted pregnancy? In this article we look at some of the most prevalent myths that still travel across cultures.

Washing, urinating, or changing position

Several old wives’ tales suggest that pregnancy can be prevented by urinating directly after sex, washing, douching, standing up quickly or avoiding lying down. These ideas often sound plausible even today because they focus on removing fluid from the body. Biologically, however, they do not give reliable protection. Why is this?

Urinating clears urine from the bladder through the urethra, which is a separate opening from the vagina. Washing or douching may affect the vagina, but sperm can move towards the cervix very quickly after ejaculation – as it has evolved to do so. The cervix is the lower opening of the womb. Once sperm has passed beyond the vagina, surface washing will not remove it or undo the possibility of fertilisation.

Douching can also disturb the normal vaginal environment, and should not be treated as a contraception method or as a safe way to “clean away” your pregnancy risk. If contraception has failed or no contraception was used, what you’ll need is time-sensitive advice from a knowledgeable medical source or your GP, not household intervention.

Period sex, first-time sex, and breastfeeding myths

Other myths focus on circumstances: sex during menstruation, the first time someone has sex, withdrawal, sex while breastfeeding or judging “safe” days in the cycle. Each has a reason people believe it, but none is a reliable universal protection.

Cycle timing is used successfully by many women as a natural alternative to contraception when planning a pregnancy, but can be difficult to judge because ovulation does not always happen on the same day each month, and can be different between women. A shorter cycle, early ovulation or sperm survival after sex (in some cases, sperm can survive for several days after intercourse) can shift the risk calculation. And what about if he ‘pulls out’? Unfortunately, withdrawal reduces your exposure to semen only if used correctly every time, and pre-ejaculate fluid can still create uncertainty. Let’s just say that this can be challenging for a partner to time accurately, despite his best intentions. Pregnancy only takes one ‘accident’.

And breastfeeding? This can have validity and is referred to as the Lactational Amenorrhoea Method, or LAM. Active breastfeeding may reduce your chance of pregnancy if your baby is under 6 months old, you are exclusively breastfeeding day and night, and your periods have not yet returned. All three criteria must apply. When or if your feeds become less frequent, formula or longer gaps between feeds are introduced, periods return, or the baby is over 6 months old, ovulation may start again and pregnancy can be possible.

What to do after unprotected sex or contraceptive failure

If you are concerned about recent unprotected sex or a contraceptive failure, the first step is to find out whether or not you’re pregnant. A home pregnancy test detects hCG, human chorionic gonadotrophin, a hormone produced immediately after pregnancy begins. Most pregnancy tests can be used from the first day of a missed period; where the next period date is unknown, testing at least 21 days after unprotected sex is advised.

If you are concerned about being pregnant, you may be able to use emergency contraception. This needs to be used within 3 to 5 days, depending on the method, and earlier use is generally preferable. If you are considering a self-home pregnancy test, a pregnancy test home kit or a Suresign 6 Day Early test, the key issue is timing. Earlier tests may be designed to detect lower levels of hCG, but the result still depends on where you are in your cycle and whether enough hormone is present in the urine. If the result does not match your symptoms, dates or circumstances, repeat testing or professional advice from your pharmacist, GP, or sexual health service is the safer next step.

Find out more

Suresign home pregnancy test kit products enable private, informed testing at home. To find out about stock availability in the UK or ROI, or to become a Suresign stockist at your pharmacy, please contact us today by [clicking here], or by calling  028 9744 1160