December, 18 2013
Blog Post
Posted in: CycleBeads
News/Blog
Challenges in the World of Family Planning - A Few Lessons Learned at the Recent CCIH Conference
December, 13 2013
Blog Post
The following article was written by Victoria Gregg, a new member of the Cycle Technologies team who has studied in Hawaii, South Korea, and is now learning new things in her hometown of DC .
As a newcomer to the Cycle Technologies team I’m doing everything I can to get up to speed on the complex world of family planning. Last week I attended a conference hosted by Christian Connections for International Health (CCIH) (www.ccih.org). The conference, “Where do Christians Stand on Family Planning? – Voices from the Global South”, was a chance to listen to health leaders from around the world share their experiences and views regarding this sensitive topic.
What did I learn?
Posted in: International Family Planning, CycleBeads
New CycleBeads Brochure Now Available
December, 03 2013
Blog Post
Exciting news! We have just released our new and improved informational brochure. It gives straightforward information about how this effective, natural family planning method works, how to screen yourself to determine if this family planning option is right for you, and features all three of the tools available to make using this natural method easy:
- CycleBeads®
- CycleBeads Online
- iCycleBeads™smartphone apps
This brochure is used by health providers and retailers to educate women about how to plan or prevent pregnancy naturally using the Standard Days Method®, the family planning method on which all of the patented CycleBeads tools are based. Contact us if you want a free brochure for your office, store or clinic at providers@cyclebeads.com or call 202.237.0662.
Check out the full brochure...
Posted in: CycleBeads
Why is "Birth Spacing" Important?
November, 26 2013
Blog Post
Spacing between pregnancies can have important health implications for a mother and her baby. Research has shown that there are a number of issues which are more likely to occur when a woman is pregnant again within a year of giving birth. These issues include an increased risk of:
- low birth weight
- small gestational size
- preterm birth
- infant death
- labor issues such as uterine rupture
Medical professionals recommend new mothers waiting at least a full year to have a another baby - some even say to wait 2 years! This gives the mothers time to replenish vital nutrients that were lost during child birth and also the recovery time to allow organs to restore back to normal. It can also help ensure that new parents will have the energy and ability to focus on another child.
What can you do to protect your health and the health of your future baby?
Posted in: Pregnancy, Womens Health
Gates Foundation Calls for Full Access, Full Choice
November, 20 2013
In 2009, Melinda Gates publicly declared her belief that global family planning is a critical human rights issue. She and her husband put the backing of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation behind the movement and established the goal of universal access to sexual and reproductive health services. Since then, with the help of cooperating partners and governments, awareness has grown, and significant strides have been made to fill the unmet need for family planning of 200 million couples in the developing world.
This year's theme for the 3rd annual International Conference on Family Planning was FULL ACCESS, FULL CHOICE. It was held last week, November 12 - 15, in Addis Ababa and was co-hosted by The Bill & Melinda Gates Institute for Population and Reproductive Health at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Federal Ministry of Health of Ethiopia. More than 3,300 delegates from 120 countries attended. The week ended with a "Call to Action" to governments to commit to providing women with access to the full range of modern contraception and voluntary family planning services.
CycleBeads is proud to be included in the full range of modern contraceptive options. After all, if a program really wants to offer women choices, they should include a natural, effective family planning option in the method mix.
Posted in: International Family Planning
Behind the Scenes of the CycleBeads Video Shoot!
November, 14 2013
Thank you to everyone who participated this past weekend in the production of our documentary-style video. Check out some of the behind the scenes photos! An amazing group of women shared their stories.
Posted in: CycleBeads, Interviews with Health Providers, Education, Men and Family Planning
USAID Reports CycleBeads Impact in the Democratic Republic of Congo
October, 29 2013
More than 26% of women in the Democratic Republic of Congo are not using a modern family planning method even though they want to avoid pregnancy. In a recent article, a program manager from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) described his experience in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and how CycleBeads as a non-hormonal family planning option is helping to address the unmet need there. The article highlights how this simple fertility tool can help address family planning issues in a complex cultural environment where views around family size, gender roles, and contraception in general have made it difficult for programs to offer family planning and reproductive health services. Check out the full article here: Non-Hormonal Methods of Contraception Meet Need in DRC
Posted in: International Family Planning
CycleBeads to Be Featured on BBC World News!
October, 22 2013
CycleBeads will be featured in an upcoming episode of Horizons on BBC World News. The program will examine how contraceptive options such as CycleBeads have helped decrease fertility rates by nearly half in South Asia and will specifically look at their impact in India.
In addition to exploring how this innovative family planning option enables women to prevent pregnancy naturally in an easy, effective, safe way, the program will also look at how some of the new digital tools such as CycleBeads Online, iCycleBeads smartphone apps, and a text-based SMS tool, are making this family planning method even more accessible.
The episode airs on November 2 and November 3. To find out the schedule in your area, check out: bbc.com/tvschedule
Posted in: International Family Planning, CycleBeads, mHealth
CycleBeads Responds to The Atlantic Article on Natural Methods of Contraception
October, 03 2013
Blog Post
A recent article in The Atlantic "The New Old-School Birth Control" outlines the complicated and challenging environment for fertility awareness-based methods. The article does a good job describing the many barriers that make it difficult for women in the U.S. to find out about natural methods and get the support they need to use them. But we disagree with the author's premise that "tracking fertility effectively is more complicated than just counting days" and that she dismisses "calendar-based methods" as "just the rhythm method".
The Standard Days Method®, the family planning method on which CycleBeads® tools are based, is a calendar-based natural method and it actually addresses many of the barriers to acceptance that the article describes for other fertility awareness-based methods.
Posted in: Birth Control Options, Fertility Awareness, Natural Birth Control, Womens Health, CycleBeads
iCycleBeads Smartphone App - Review on Preggie Pals
September, 23 2013
Blog Post
Preggie Pals, a weekly audio podcast and online resource for expecting moms and dads and those trying to become pregnant, recently reviewed the iCycleBeads iPhone app. Overall they gave it two thumb's up! It was interesting to hear the persepctives of women using the app who are trying to get pregnant as opposed to using it to prevent pregnancy. Comments included:
"A much more organized way to track my fertility."
"Nice. Easy. Simple."
But a couple of women mentioned that if you are trying to get pregnant, you may want something more "comprehensive" that allows you to track your BBT (that's your Basal Body Temperature). We know that when a woman decides she wants to get pregnant, she often wants to know exactly when she ovulated, and tracking her BBT is one way to do this. But we would note that when women used just CycleBeads tools (iCycleBeads smartphone apps, CycleBeads Online, or the physical tool CycleBeads) to get pregnant, they were highly successful. Recent surveys show that 37% of women who use CycleBeads tools to get pregnant, are pregnant within the first month, and 80% are pregnant within 6 months.
Listen to the full podcast here: http://www.preggiepals.com/icyclebeads-plan-or-prevent-pregnancy/
Posted in: Technology