There are many types of birth control out there. They range from pills to foams. They can keep women from getting pregnant and some even protect you from sexually transmitted diseases.

You can choose the pill. There are a lot of different types of pills, such as Ortho Tri-Cyclen and Yasmin. The pill contains estrogen and progestin to work in two ways:

One- It tricks the body into thinking you're pregnant. It prevents the release of an egg. With out an egg to fertilize the woman can't become pregnant.

Two- Cervical mucus is thickened, making it difficult for sperm to travel toward the egg and fertilize it in case an egg is released.

The pill also has many side effects, such as, irregular vaginal bleeding, vomiting, nervousness, dizziness, and vaginal infections. Some of the more serious side effects are blood clots, heart attacks and strokes, gallbladder disease, liver tumors, and cancer of the productive organs and breasts.

The patch is also available. Ortho-Evra is the first patch to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration. You can wear it on your butt, arm, hip, or stomach. The patch is just as effective as the pill, but you don't have to take it every day, you only have to change it once a week. The hormones that are released through the patch are just like those that are in the pill.

The shot, Depro-Provera, is a shot of estrogen and progestin that you get in your but or in your arm every 12 weeks. So you won't have to worry about birth control for about four months. Norplant is another type of shot, but with Norplant they inject a capsule under the skin in your arm. The capsule slowly injects the progestin and estrogen in your body to prevent pregnancy, the capsules will stay in your arm and work for up to five years. You can have them removed at any time, but you'll be charged. The shots also work the same as the pill, and patch.

Condoms, foams, creams, jelly's, and suppositories are all other types of birth control. Condoms can also prevent sexually transmitted diseases, but there is always the chance of breaking the condom.

There are many forms of birth control, more than the few that I named. But there are always the chances of the side effects. And no birth control is one hundred percent effective.