How to eliminate divorce
By Tom Quiner
Marriage is on shaky ground, and I’m not talking gay marriage.
The chance of a first marriage ending in divorce ranges from 41% to 50%.
The chance of a second marriage ending in divorce ranges from 60% to 67%.
The chance of a third marriage ending in divorce ranges from 73% to 74%.
This data comes to us from diverse sources, including U.S. Census Bureau, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Center for Health Statistics, and the independent Americans for Divorce Reform.
There is one group that has a shockingly low divorce rate of only .2%. In other words, this mystery group only experiences 2 divorces out of every one thousand marriages compared to as many as 500 divorces out of a thousand for the general population.
Who is this group, and what is their secret?
This group practices natural family planning, also known as NFP. NFP encourages spouses to approach fertility as a team instead of as purely an issue to the woman. In other words, it turns men into givers instead of takers.
Evidence shows that NFP builds cooperation between spouses and puts them on the same team, so to speak, on the critical issue of bringing life into the world, or postponing it in a natural way. NFP nurtures respect of wives in these husbands.
The question couples have is: is NFP effective? Science Daily wrote on research that reveals the answer is a resounding yes:
“Researchers have found that a method of natural family planning that uses two indicators to identify the fertile phase in a woman’s menstrual cycle is as effective as the contraceptive pill for avoiding unplanned pregnancies if used correctly, according to a report published online in Europe’s leading reproductive medicine journal Human Reproduction today (21 February, 2007).”
Depending on a few variables, the rate of unintended pregnancy ranged from .4 to 1.8%:
“The symptothermal method (STM) is a form of natural family planning (NFP) that enables couples to identify accurately the time of the woman’s fertile phase by measuring her temperature and observing cervical secretions. In the largest, prospective study of STM, the researchers found that if the couples then either abstained from sex or used a barrier method during the fertile period, the rate of unplanned pregnancies per year was 0.4% and 0.6% respectively. Out of all the 900 women who took part in the study, including those who had unprotected sex during their fertile period, 1.8 per 100 became unintentionally pregnant.”
The lead author of the report, Petra Frank-Herrmann, said these numbers compare favorably with other popular methods of contraception:
“For a contraceptive method to be rated as highly efficient as the hormonal pill, there should be less than one pregnancy per 100 women per year when the method is used correctly. The pregnancy rate for women who used the STM method correctly in our study was 0.4%, which can be interpreted as one pregnancy occurring per 250 women per year. Therefore, we maintain that the effectiveness of STM is comparable to the effectiveness of modern contraceptive methods such as oral contraceptives, and is an effective and acceptable method of family planning.”
There is another huge upside to NFP: there are no side effects, because it is all natural, unlike the Pill and other forms of contraception. Although side effects to the Pill are not reported by the mainstream media, the concerns are real.
How do you dramatically reduce divorce? How can you morally, effectively, and safely plan your family? The surprising answer is NFP.
Planned Parenthood has a huge financial stake in the expansion of contraception and abortion. If everyone practiced NFP, they’d be out of business.
