Korean Job Discussion Forums

Real Reality · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Location: Seoul

'Birth Control Pills Need Prescription'
By Bae Ji-sook, Korea Times (January 7, 2009)
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/01/117_37471.html

jillbean1217 · Joined: 04 Jul 2008

I definitely don't think that you should need a prescription for birth control. The effects are easy enough to figure out on your own, especially since they are printed right on the box. It sucks to have to go to the doctor back home in order to be prescribed the pill...if I had to go to the doctor here, I'd probably just go without.

Interesting to note that you need a prescription for birth control in the states but you DONT need a prescription for the morning after pill...

tzechuk · Joined: 20 Dec 2004

I guess I am old school - in the UK you need a prescription to get birth control....

I wonder if the pills being free has something to do with it.. but anyway... at every doctor's appointment, my blood pressure was measured, the doc asked how I was getting on with the pills and if I had any major side effects etc... and it was comforting to know that I was being looked after.

The one issue that bothered me a lot when I was on the pill was the risk of getting blood clot.. that used to scare the shit out of me.

I am no longer on the pill, but I still think it is quite essential to get blood pressure checked out and if the pill is suitable for you or not discussed...

oldtactics · Joined: 18 Oct 2008

Overdosing on pseudoephedrine or codeine is just as dangerous/more dangerous than misusing birth control pills - at some point it has to become the consumers responsibility to read the paperwork that comes with the medication. Plus, there are lots of health providers + pharmacists around if the girl has questions.

I'm 100% supportive of birth control and morning after pills being available on the shelf, without a prescription.

Oh well.

Wisconsinite · Joined: 05 Jan 2007

I don't think the side effects of the pill are any worse than many other over the counter drugs. Have you ever read the possible effects of Tylenol? For goodness sakes you can buy the major ingredient in meth in OTC drugs, although now they register users in America anyways.

I felt the article was a scare tactic. It was completely skewed in the idea that you will suffer severe side effects of using the pill. In a country that relies an "alternative methods" of birth control, I think that perhaps the article should have mentioned the side effects but also mentioned the good things. BCP can regulate painful or irregular periods, clear up skin, and best of all PREVENT PREGNANCY, particularly the unwanted kind.

In addition, he is misinformed about using pills to skip periods. Research has shown that there is no real reason to menstrate every month and that women are completely safe with 4-6 periods a year. Some birth controls offer that alternative to begin with.

Again, shoddy reporting to begin with....sometimes I want to meet the editor in charge of KT and just ask "why?"

SeoulShakin · Joined: 05 Jan 2006 Location: Seoul

I don't think it's necessary to have a prescription to get the pill, and I think having such easy access to it will simply make more girls take it. Especially in Korea, where doctor's tell people anything, I think young women might be more comfortable going to get the pill anonymously, rather than risk mommy and daddy finding out they are having sex.

I do, however, think that it is important to get yearly gynecological examinations when you are on the pill, just to make sure everything is as it is supposed to be (but you should have that done if you are sexually active anyway).

peppermint · Posted: Wed Jan 07, 2009 5:16 pm Post subject:

the iron supplements I take are kept behind the counter at the pharmacy, but available without a prescription. I wonder if that might not be a good compromise. .

RACETRAITOR · Joined: 24 Oct 2005 Location: Seoul, South Korea

If birth control pills need a prescription, then all the doctors who are against birth control would have to be fired. Probably not a smart idea.

Bryan · Joined: 29 Oct 2007

I don't believe the government should mandate what people can or can't take with their bodies, in the realm of ANY pharmaceutical. Absolutely any drug can kill you, including over the counter drugs thought of as safe. Even many foods can cause serious harm to people if they use them stupidly.

People can misuse things, it's true. But that is no reason to punish the smart and intelligent people who can do the research themselves and find out of a drug is right for them. People who think prescriptions and paternal government are mandatory are people who think humanity is stupid and incapable by its own nature, who need some God in the government to take care of them and tell them what is best for them.

browneyedgirl · Joined: 17 Jul 2007

That�s crazy! Sure there might be bad side effects from the pill, but there are bad side effects from cigarettes and you don't need a prescription for that.

Bigfeet · Joined: 29 May 2008 Location: Grrrrr.....

Heck no, make love not war! Wink

aimeecate · Joined: 03 Sep 2006

I think this was really one sided journalism. As others have said the author emphasized all the side effects but didn't say anything about the benefits of taking the pill! For example it may increase your risk of cervical cancer but it also decreases your risk for other cancers like ovarian cancer.
Yes, there are lots of potential side effects to taking the pill but I believe they are relatively rare and the benefits out weigh them.

excitinghead · Joined: 18 Jul 2005

Please forgive my blatant plug for my blog post on this topic:

http://thegrandnarrative.wordpress.com/2009/01/10/korean-medical-association-dont-take-the-pill/

To be honest, I got a few ideas for it from posters in this thread, so thanks!