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id="wrap"> <div id="header"><h1><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/">Behind the Numbers: The PRB blog on population, health, and the environment</a></h1></div> <div class="hr"></div> <div class="hr2"></div><div class="left"> <h2 class="widgettitle">Authors</h2> <ul> <li class="widget widget_authors"> <ul><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?author=4" title="Posts by Bill Butz">Bill Butz</a> (7)</li><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?author=6" title="Posts by Carl Haub">Carl Haub</a> (3)</li><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?author=11" title="Posts by Charlie Teller">Charlie Teller</a> (2)</li><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?author=14" title="Posts by Deborah Mesce">Deborah Mesce</a> (1)</li><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?author=10" title="Posts by Eric Zuehlke">Eric Zuehlke</a> (1)</li><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?author=13" title="Posts by Jason Bremner">Jason Bremner</a> (3)</li><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?author=16" title="Posts by Jay Gribble">Jay Gribble</a> (1)</li><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?author=17" title="Posts by Marissa Yeakey">Marissa Yeakey</a> (1)</li><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?author=12" title="Posts by Mark Mather">Mark Mather</a> (2)</li><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?author=15" title="Posts by Victoria Ebin">Victoria Ebin</a> (1)</li></ul> </li> </ul> <ul> <li id="categories-1" class="widget widget_categories"><h2 class="widgettitle">Topics</h2> <ul> <li class="cat-item cat-item-3"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?cat=3" title="Blog on the PRB topic- Education">Education</a> (1) </li> <li class="cat-item cat-item-4"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?cat=4" title="Blog on the PRB topic of Environment">Environment</a> (4) </li> <li class="cat-item cat-item-5"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?cat=5" title="Blog on the PRB topic of Gender">Gender</a> (2) </li> <li class="cat-item cat-item-7"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?cat=7" title="Blog on the PRB Topic of Immigration/Migration">Immigration/Migration</a> (1) </li> <li class="cat-item cat-item-8"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?cat=8" title="Blog on the topic of Income/Poverty">Income/Poverty</a> (2) </li> <li class="cat-item cat-item-9"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?cat=9" title="Blog on the topic of Marriage Family">Marriage/Family</a> (1) </li> <li class="cat-item cat-item-10"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?cat=10" title="Blog about the topic of Population basics">Population Basics</a> (9) </li> <li class="cat-item cat-item-31"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?cat=31" title="View all posts filed under PRB News">PRB News</a> (7) </li> <li class="cat-item cat-item-12"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?cat=12" title="Blog on the topic of reproductive health ">Reproductive Health</a> (4) </li> <li class="cat-item cat-item-13"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?cat=13" title="Blog on the topic of Youth">Youth</a> (1) </li> </ul> </li> <li id="tag_cloud" class="widget widget_tag_cloud"><h2 class="widgettitle">Tags</h2> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=census" class="tag-link-39" title="4 topics" style="font-size: 22pt;">census</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=contraception" class="tag-link-53" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">contraception</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=education" class="tag-link-3" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">Education</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=engage" class="tag-link-55" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">ENGAGE</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=ethiopia" class="tag-link-41" title="2 topics" style="font-size: 12.666666666667pt;">Ethiopia</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=europe" class="tag-link-46" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">Europe</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=evaluation" class="tag-link-48" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">evaluation</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=family-planning" class="tag-link-27" title="2 topics" style="font-size: 12.666666666667pt;">family planning</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=fertility" class="tag-link-45" title="2 topics" style="font-size: 12.666666666667pt;">fertility</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=food" class="tag-link-32" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">food</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=journalism" class="tag-link-42" title="2 topics" style="font-size: 12.666666666667pt;">journalism</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=kenya" class="tag-link-54" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">Kenya</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=malnutrition" class="tag-link-33" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">malnutrition</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=migrants" class="tag-link-36" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">migrants</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=pakistan" class="tag-link-52" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">Pakistan</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=photos" class="tag-link-51" title="3 topics" style="font-size: 17.333333333333pt;">photos</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=policy" class="tag-link-30" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">policy</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=population-growth" class="tag-link-38" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">population growth</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=poverty" class="tag-link-29" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">poverty</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=prb-in-the-field" class="tag-link-50" title="4 topics" style="font-size: 22pt;">PRB in the field</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=rwanda" class="tag-link-56" title="2 topics" style="font-size: 12.666666666667pt;">Rwanda</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=statistics" class="tag-link-44" title="4 topics" style="font-size: 22pt;">statistics</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=tanzania" class="tag-link-49" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">tanzania</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=us" class="tag-link-40" title="2 topics" style="font-size: 12.666666666667pt;">U.S.</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=video" class="tag-link-37" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">video</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?tag=women" class="tag-link-43" title="1 topics" style="font-size: 8pt;">women</a></li> <li id="recent-posts" class="widget widget_recent_entries"> <h2 class="widgettitle">Recent Posts</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?p=50">PRB in the Field: Population, Health, and Environment in Rwanda, part 2 </a></li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?p=49">PRB in the Field: Population, Health, and Environment in Rwanda, part 1 </a></li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?p=48">PRB in the Field: Building political will for family planning in Kenya </a></li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?p=47">To Tell the Truth…With Statistics!: Aggregates and Averages </a></li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?p=46">PRB in the Field: A Study Tour on Reproductive Health for Tanzanian Journalists </a></li> </ul> </li> <li id="archives" class="widget widget_archives"><h2 class="widgettitle">Archives</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?m=200903" title="March 2009">March 2009</a> (4)</li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?m=200902" title="February 2009">February 2009</a> (1)</li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?m=200901" title="January 2009">January 2009</a> (6)</li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?m=200812" title="December 2008">December 2008</a> (3)</li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?m=200811" title="November 2008">November 2008</a> (3)</li> <li><a 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According to the recent Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey 2006-07, almost 30 percent of married women of reproductive age (ages 15 to 49) use some form of family planning—either a traditional or modern method. Recent surveys indicate that use of family planning methods has hovered around 30 percent for almost a decade</p> <p>But what does this “30 percent” mean? So often, officials use aggregate numbers as the basis for decisions about policies and programs. But there are many ways to look at what that “30 percent” represents—and many of them could provide valuable insight into how to better serve the reproductive health needs of Pakistani women and couples. Let’s take a look at a few of them.</p> <p>We can consider how the “30 percent” breaks down by type of contraceptive method use. Of the 30 percent of women who use a family planning method, 8 percent use a traditional method and 22 percent use a modern method. If we considered only the group of women who report using any form of family planning, over a quarter (8/30) of them have opted to use a relatively ineffective methods—rhythm and withdrawal are the two most common traditional methods used. When we look at the use of modern methods, the most popular choice is female sterilization. Eight percent of all married women ages 15 to 49 have chosen sterilization; but when considering only women who are using family planning, over a quarter of women have chose sterilization. Condoms are also a popular method and are the choice of 7 percent of all married women ages 15 to 49 ( and the choice of 23 percent of women who use any form of family planning). However, inconsistent use of condoms can lead to unplanned pregnancies. So what does method mix tell us about family planning in Pakistan? It says that not too many women use effective contraception until they are ready to end childbearing. Few women use modern methods for the purpose of spacing pregnancies, which contributes to better health for both mothers and children.</p> <p>Another way to look at the “30 percent” is based on the number of children that a woman already has. In many parts of the world, women use contraception for years after marriage, choosing to start a family when they are ready. In Pakistan, less than 1 percent of women who have no children use family planning. It isn’t until women have three or more children that they really begin to think about family planning. After having five or more children, women opt for sterilization. Most Pakistani women are not using family planning to space pregnancies; if anything, they are using it so that they don’t ever get pregnant again.</p> <p>Finally, one of the most important ways of looking at the “30 percent” is by wealth group. It’s very common for a larger percentage of wealthier women to use family planning than poor women, which is also the case in Pakistan. Among the poor, almost 16 percent use family planning, while 43 percent of women the wealthiest group are using contraception. Among the poor who are using any form of family planning, almost half are sterilized and one third uses another modern method. But the fact that 84 percent of poor women are not using any form of family planning is a very important piece of information to know. Among the wealthy, 31 percent use modern methods and 12 percent rely on ineffective traditional methods. Again, the national average of “30 percent” hides this important variation.</p> <p>Given what we know about high fertility and poverty, we should be thinking more about how to make family planning more accessible to the poor. While the “30 percent” leaves room for improvement, the fact that 84 percent of Pakistan’s poorest women are not using any form of family planning suggests that something must to change.</p> <p>Averages are useful for comparisons, but remember to scratch the surface and see what’s really going on.</p> <br/> <p> <small> <span> You can follow any responses to this entry through the</span> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?feed=rss2&p=47">RSS 2.0</a> <span>feed.</span> <span>You can </span><a href="#respond">leave a response</a>, <span>or</span> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/wp-trackback.php?p=47" rel="trackback">trackback</a> <span>from your own site.</span> </span></small> </p> </div>  <div class="addthis"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?pub=blogohblog&url=http://prbblog.org/?p=47&title=To Tell the Truth…With Statistics!: Aggregates and Averages" title="Bookmark using any bookmark manager!" target="_blank"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656im_/http://s9.addthis.com/button1-bm.gif" width="125" height="16" border="0" alt="AddThis Social Bookmark Button"/></a></div> </div>   <div class="comments"><h3>Leave a Reply</h3></div> <form action="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/wp-comments-post.php" method="post" id="commentform"> <p><input type="text" name="author" id="author" value="" size="22" tabindex="1"/> <label for="author"><small>Name (required)</small></label></p> <p><input type="text" name="email" id="email" value="" size="22" tabindex="2"/> <label for="email"><small>Mail (will not be published) (required)</small></label></p> <p><input type="text" name="url" id="url" value="" size="22" tabindex="3"/> <label for="url"><small>Website</small></label></p>  <p><textarea name="comment" id="comment" cols="60%" rows="10" tabindex="4"></textarea></p> <p><input name="submit" type="submit" id="submit" tabindex="5" value="Submit Comment"/> <input type="hidden" name="comment_post_ID" value="47"/> </p> </form> <div class="alignleft">« <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?p=46">PRB in the Field: A Study Tour on Reproductive Health for Tanzanian Journalists</a></div> <div class="alignright"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://prbblog.org/?p=48">PRB in the Field: Building political will for family planning in Kenya</a> »</div> </div> </td></tr></table></center>  <br/><br/> <div align="center"> <div align="center" id="ftr"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656im_/http://www.prb.org/images/footer2.gif" width="3" height="23" align="right"/><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656im_/http://www.prb.org/images/footer1.gif" width="3" height="23" align="left"/><span class="footertext">Services: <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://www.prb.org/Home/EmailSignup.aspx">Get E-Mail News</a>  ·  <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://www.prb.org/Join.aspx">Join/Renew Membership</a>  ·  <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://www.prb.org/Donate.aspx">Donate</a>  ·  <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://www.prb.org/Bookstore.aspx">Bookstore</a>  ·  <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://www.prb.org/Home/Contact.aspx">Contact</a>  ·  <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://www.prb.org/SpanishContent.aspx">Español</a>  ·  <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://www.prb.org/FrenchContent.aspx">Français</a></span></div> <span class="footer2text"><b>Copyright 2007, Population Reference Bureau.</b> All rights reserved. • <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/http://www.prb.org/Home/Privacy.aspx">Privacy Policy</a></span><br/> <span class="footer2text">1875 Connecticut Avenue, NW • Suite 520 • Washington, DC 20009-5728 • USA <br/> <b>Phone:</b> 800-877-9881 • <b>Fax:</b> 202-328-3937 • <b>E-mail:</b> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090331185656/mailto:popref@prb.org">popref@prb.org</a></span><br/> </div>  </div>  <script type="text/javascript"> var gaJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? 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