Surprised by the stork

By Phil Lawler ( bio - articles - email ) | Jan 04, 2005

Federal health officials are worried sick, having spotted a trend away from contraceptive use. In the last 7 years, it seems, the number of women of child-bearing age who are having sexual intercourse but not using contraceptives has risen from 5.2% to 7.4%.

That still means that almost 19 of 20 women are doing something to thwart their reproductive systems. But for US government officials, that's not good enough. The trouble, they tell us-- and you can almost see the furrows in their brows as you read the quotes-- is that many women are likely to experience "unintended pregnancies."

Unintended? If you're having sex, and not using birth control-- and assuming that you've learned about the birds and the bees, how "unintended" is the pregnancy going to be?

Hey, I have a really wild theory. Maybe 7.4% of American women want to have babies.