Natural birth control made simple

First published in 1981 as The Fertility Handbook and in 1992 as The Fertility Awareness Handbook: The Natural Guide to Avoiding or Achieving Pregnancy, this new edition, coauthored by a nurse practitioner specializing in women's health and a gynecologist specializing in reproductive endocrinology, provides the latest information on the natural family planning and fertility awareness methods of birth control. Using these methods involves charting basal body temperatures, examining cervical mucus, and noting changes in the cervix to determine when ovulation occurs. A woman can then abstain from intercourse, use a barrier method of contraception, or dispense with protection if she wishes to conceive a child. The authors also offer information about the physiology of reproduction, the history of natural family planning, and the advantages and disadvantages of this method. They include sample contracts for women and couples who wish to make formal commitments and a short, well-chosen bibliography of traditional and alternative health resources. This is a good book for consumer health and public libraries in need of updated material on natural family planning, especially as most books on birth control omit this technique.-Barbara M. Bibel, Oakland P.L. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.