Creation of "the pill"
“In the 1950s pharmaceutical companies gained FDA approval for a hormonal compound that would cure menstrual irregularities by temporarily surpressing ovulation.”[1] In 1957 the first birth control pill referred to as Enovid, went on the market as a treatment for infertility and menstrual disorders and three years later a request for the pill to be used as a contraceptive was made.[2] During this time the FDA was flooded with new drugs and could not keep up. As a result they set up trials and sent letters to doctors to report their findings of the contraceptive drug. After trials and around seventy-five physicians, around the country, evaluating the safety, effectiveness, and problems, Enovid was announced professional approval by the FDA in May, 1960 and announced safe as a daily contraceptive in June 1960.[3] However, “because there were still concerns about its long-term safety. the FDA limited use of the pill to two consecutive years.”[4] Although risks and complications were known to doctors, many were reluctant to disclose information to their patients. As a result, many women did not know the dangers of the birth control pill.
The birth control pill transformed women’s lives like never before. ‘The pill’ was an immediate change onto society that allowed women to have control over their reproductive health. Between 1960 and 1965 the number of women choosing oral contraceptives as their main source of birth control skyrocketed. The pill was the most popular choice of birth control in America with 95% of obstetricians and gynaecologists in the Untied States prescribing the pill with only five years of approval by the FDA.[5] However, as time went on, information regarding the risks and regulations behind the pill became public knowledge, causing many women to think about their reproductive autonomy within the male-dominated medical field.