Who Switches from Hormonal to Non-Hormonal Contraception? A Descriptive Analysis of Contraceptive Use Patterns in the United States, 2018-2022

Leah Koenig, University of California, San Francisco
Brooke Whitfield, Population Research Center - University of Texas At Austin

Discourse about negative hormonal contraception experiences have risen in recent years. Anecdotal evidence suggests this may result in people switching from hormonal to non-hormonal methods. However, researchers have a limited understanding of how prevalent switching from hormonal to non-hormonal contraception is in the United States and the characteristics of users making this switch. We used 24-month contraceptive calendar data representing 2018-2022 among a nationally representative sample of 815 people assigned female at birth, ages 18-49. We examined calendars with =3 months of non-hormonal method use and, within this group, compared characteristics of users who switched from hormonal to non-hormonal contraception to other non-hormonal users. One in four respondents (24%) used non-hormonal methods and 8% switched from hormonal to non-hormonal methods. Non-hormonal users were similar to people with other contraceptive patterns. However, users who switched from hormonal to non-hormonal methods were more likely than other non-hormonal users to be: <30 years old (52% vs. 31%, p=0.010), cohabiting (15% vs. 10%), or never-married (42% vs. 27%, p=0.027). Nearly 1 in 10 U.S. women have switched from hormonal to non-hormonal contraception, with switching particularly high among younger populations. Future research should examine the relationship between exposure to online anti-hormonal sentiment and method switching.

Keywords: Family Planning and Contraception, Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights

See extended abstract.