New, more convenient and possibly more reliable forms of birth control are now available to ISU students.

The Pill is still the most popular birth control option for women at Iowa State, said Marc Shulman, chief of staff at Thielen Student Health Center. But other choices, including the Ortho Evra patch and NuvaRing, are growing in popularity due to their convenience, he said.

Ortho Evra, a square adhesive patch worn on the abdomen, upper torso or buttocks, delivers a continuous dose of ovulation-preventing hormones through the skin.

The patch delivers the same type of hormones, estrogen and progestin, found in the most common type of birth control pill. Like the Pill, the patch is 99 percent effective with perfect use, Shulman said. But the Pill’s effectiveness decreases if the tablet is not taken every day at the same time.

Since the patch is attached to the skin 24 hours per day, its effectiveness remains steady, he said.

“[Ortho Evra] is great for people who have trouble remembering pills daily — for someone who doesn’t want to be bothered every day,” Shulman said.

NuvaRing works along the same principle, Shulman said. NuvaRing, a flexible ring inserted into the vagina, also delivers a constant dose of hormones into the bloodstream. NuvaRing has been available since last spring, Shulman said, but it hasn’t proven as popular as the patch.

“Some users have complained of an uncomfortable feeling,” he said. “It takes some getting used to, and some women just don’t want to do that.”

NuvaRing is 98 to 99 percent effective with perfect use.

Another form of birth control hasn’t even hit the market yet, but students are already asking for it by name, said Gregory Yeakel, chief of staff at the Thielen Student Health Center pharmacy.

Seasonale, due to be released in November, is a new birth control pill that reduces a woman’s monthly period to just four periods per year. The new pill contains the same kind of hormones as a traditional pill, but is taken for 84 consecutive days, followed by 7 placebo pills, causing a quarterly period.

“It’s a kind of birth control, but it’s a different way of taking it,” Yeakel said. “Four periods a year instead of one every month? If I’m a woman, I’m excited about that.”

The new innovations in birth control methods are welcome additions to a range of choices offered to women, but guarding against pregnancy is just one concern when protecting oneself during sex, Shulman said. None of the new options offers protection against sexually transmitted diseases.

“If you’re not in a long-term, monogamous relationship, you need to use a form of birth control plus a condom,” he said.