at first
, the fda only approved the pill for severe menstrual disorders. then, suddenly, 500,000 women claimed to be suffering from those exact disorders. suspicious! in 1960, the fda finally approved the pill for contraceptive use — to great popularity, despite being illegal in eight states. the first pill was called enovid and was manufactured by g.d. searle and company. a few years later, just a wee bit in america’s footsteps, birth control leagues began appearing in major canadian cities, including toronto and vancouver. they eventually became planned parenthood clinics.
according to planned parenthood, by 1965, one out of every four married women in america under 45 had used the pill. by 1967, nearly 13 million women in the world were on it and, by 1984, that number would reach 50 to 80 million. today, it looks more like 100 million. its beginnings led right into the sexual revolution of the 1960s likely to the relief of many, the
publication
of 1968’s
birth control handbook
— a how-to guide by mcgill university students in montreal — and the legalization of contraception in canada in 1969.
still, the pill received a fair share of backlash throughout its development, from everyone including the catholic church to conservative activists. pope john paul vi even declared his opposition in the
humanae vitae
encyclical in 1968. the criticism really made a dent a year later, when a woman named barbara seaman
published
the doctor’s case against the pill,
which listed its many side effects, including the risk of blood clots, heart attack, stroke, depression, weight gain and loss of libido. seaman’s accounts of women experiencing these risks were incredibly sensationalized, and she demonized planned parenthood in her crusade.