ABSTRACT
All human societies practice some form of population control, and many indigenous forms of con trolling fertility are found world-wide. Family planning and contraception have existed long before the arrival of modern methods such as ‘the pill’, the condom and the intrauterine contraceptive device. In each case, these traditional approaches need to be understood in the context of people’s beliefs about the functioning of their bodies, and about the nature of sexuality, fertility and pregnancy. Whatever their degree of efficacy, their dangers and side-effects, many of these traditional forms of fertility control have been used for many centuries, and are deeply trusted by those who make use of them. As such they need to be taken seriously, and to be evaluated as to their usefulness in the modern world. In some countries, traditional forms of birth control, and traditional remedies, are being adapted to modern needs and to the modern problems of overpopulation.
