Reliance on Withdrawal and Calendar Methods Persists: The Reality of Contraception Among Women in Their 20s and 30s

Only 38.3% Use Modern Contraceptive Methods
Combined Issues: Financial Burden, Misconceptions About Oral Contraceptives, and Gaps in Sex Education

It was found that a significant number of women in their 20s and 30s still rely on the withdrawal method or the calendar-based method, rather than modern contraceptives. Experts point out that this is the result of a combination of factors, including a lack of information about proven contraceptive methods, distorted perceptions, and sex education that is disconnected from reality.

On June 6, JoongAng Ilbo reported, citing the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs' (KIHASA) 2025 survey "Second Sexual and Reproductive Health Survey by Life Cycle of Korean Women," that among women aged 19 to 39 who had sexual experience within the past year, only 62% said they "always use contraception" during intercourse. In contrast, 38% responded that they "sometimes use contraception" (17.1%) or "never use contraception" (20.9%).

The methods of contraception used were also identified as an issue. Among women who had sexual experience in the past year and who were neither menopausal, pregnant, nor postpartum, only 38.3% used exclusively modern contraceptive methods such as condoms or oral contraceptives. On the other hand, the most commonly used contraceptive method was the calendar-based method (33.6%). Among the methods used by their partners, withdrawal was the second most common (42.2%) after condoms.

Women in their 20s and 30s still show a preference against modern contraceptive methods such as condoms. Pixabay

A similar trend was observed in a survey by the Korean Women's Development Institute. Among men and women aged 20 to 39 who had sexual experience in the past three years, withdrawal (37.7%) was the second most commonly used contraceptive method after male condoms (91.6%). The research team analyzed that this structure places a greater burden of responsibility and decision-making regarding contraception on women.

The most common reason for not always using contraception was "because I don't think it will be easy to get pregnant" (42.1%), followed by "because using contraceptive devices is inconvenient" (36.5%).

Experts warn that perceiving withdrawal and the calendar-based method as safe contraceptive methods is dangerous. Some studies have reported that the failure rate of withdrawal can be as high as 40%, and the calendar-based method also carries a high risk of failure because ovulation can change due to stress or environmental factors.

Experts also cite financial burden, vague aversion to oral contraceptives, and insufficient sex education as issues. In fact, among women aged 19 to 39 who had sexual experience in the past year, 14.8% reported experiencing an unplanned pregnancy due to not using contraception or contraceptive failure. As a result, there are calls for providing information on effective contraceptive methods and strengthening practical sex education.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.