Women’s Risk of Unwanted Pregnancy Increases during the Holidays

Half of women risk unwanted pregnancy during the holidays due to a number of reasons, a recent study finds.

One in every six women forgot to take their pills because they were drunk and one in every seven forgot to do so because they were distracted by the festivities. Likely, one in every six women deliberately ditch taking pills because they find it difficult to request a prescription during the busy holiday season. As a result, more and more women risk unwanted pregnancy during this time of the year.

This study comes from LloydsPharmacy Online Doctor which says that data shows a 32 percent increase in the use of its online contraception services at Christmas. The pharmacy interviewed approximately 2,000 women and found that one in three women find it hard to see their doctors or nurses in December. 28 percent of respondents admitted that they forgot to take their pill because they had gone to stay with their relatives and forgot to pack it with them. Thus, it is no surprise that 13 percent of women admit to taking the morning after pill over Christmas and one in 14 say they needed it after their office Christmas party.

Dr. Tom Brett, Medical Director for LloydsPharmacy Online Doctor said: We often see peaks in our contraceptive services after the weekend but during November and December as the party season gets underway, there is a clear and significant uplift in others. The combination of an increased need for contraceptive services with reduced hours at local GP surgeries over the festive holiday period can leave some women wondering where to go as many might not be aware that it is impossible to seek this sort of help online."