Contraception in Ancient Greece, Egypt, and Rome

Methods of contraception used in ancient Egypt , Greece , and Rome differed in their nature and degree of effectiveness . They ranged from scientific methods that are still used nowadays to quasi-scientific and barely effective to dangerous and futile

In ancient Egypt , females used a mixture of honey and sodium bicarbonate to irrigate their genitalia . Another invention was a tampon-like object with acid anhydride . Acid anhydride is still used as a chief component of contemporary contraceptive jellies . Manuscript titled Ebers Papyrus from 1550 BC , contains an advice about mixing dates , acacia bark and

honey into a paste to be placed the vagina . The effectiveness of this method was considerable for the reason that sugar ferments were converted into lactic acid , a spermicide (Chauhan , 2003

While some substances that were used did not have any specific qualities to have a chemical effect on the sperm , `the insertion of substances like honey or crocodile dung into the vagina could have effectively blocked a male 's semen because of its thick consistency (Habiger , 1998 `Pregnancy ' para . 4

Barrier methods were also widespread : women in ancient Egypt used vaginal suppositories as a method of contraception (Hearthstone Communications , 2007

As for men in Ancient Egypt , in 1000 BC they used fabric condoms both to protect themselves from disease (which is believed to be the primary reason ) and avoid having undesired children . Women used celery seed as an oral contraceptive , as a recipe written in the Berlin Papyrus from Egypt 's Nineteenth Dynasty (1300 BC ) advices (Riddle , 1999

As concerns Ancient Greece , by the 2nd century CE , gynecologist Soranus developed a theory that female fertility was limited to ovulation period however , he made an incorrect assumption that ovulation happened during menstruation , not before it . Yet the origins of the rhythm method that is still practiced nowadays and is proven to be effective (although not as effective as condoms or other newer methods ) can be traced back to those times . Soranus also promoted a variety of ineffective quasi-scientific methods , such as holding the breath and drawing the body back during the intercourse to prevent the sperm from penetrating the mouth of the uterus , jumping backwards seven times after sex to dislodge the sperm by , or sitting down on bent knees to cause sneezing Regrettably , some advices by Sofranus were not only inefficient but also detrimental to women 's health , like an advice to drink the water that blacksmiths used to cool hot metals (Nottingham , n /d

Squirting cucumber and pomegranate were other methods used , and , as recent animal tests show , they had a contraceptive effect (Riddle 1999

While the aforementioned methods are connected to female contraception in Ancient Greece , men were also experimenting with some methods of birth control to avoid having illegitimate or undesirable children Aristotle believed that homosexual relations could be regarded as a population control method . Two methods that are still used nowadays and can be described as having a limited degree of reliability were coitus reservatus (withholding ejaculation ) and coitus interruptus (ejaculating outside the vagina...