Most sexually active women in the US use contraception to avoid pregnancy. After the Dobbs Dobbs ruling of the US Supreme Court, which overturned Roe v. Wade and opened the way for abortion bans nationwide, access to contraception is important to protect personal autonomy, prevent unwanted pregnancies, and advance health equity, especially in states that prohibit or significantly restrict access to abortion (Smereka 2025).
In addition to legal barriers, young women’s access to reproductive care is often limited by barriers such as affordability, lack of neighborhood providers, and increasing rates of reproductive care. Social media incorrect information. The influence of social media, along with “the nocebo effect”—that negative expectations contribute to perceived negative effects—has led some young women to stop using contraceptives.
A teenager and young adult patients are the most vulnerable demographics to be targeted and influenced by misinformation. Young women are reporting to their doctors more about the side effects than the effectiveness of birth control pills, a trend fueled by the rise of social media influencers promoting “natural” birth control methods, such as fertility awareness methods (in fact, among the least effective methods of contraception because they are so difficult to use correctly).
How does social media coverage of contraception affect young women?
Nearly half of women aged 18-25 heard about birth control on social media in the past year, according to 2024 data Women’s Health Research (WHS), a nationally representative survey of 3,901 US women aged 18-49. TikTok has a flood of videos from content creators, naturopathic doctors, and others in the wellness industry focusing on the negative effects of birth control pills (BCPs).
Some posts show videos of young women crying to show how miserable this drug is. Other accounts describe symptoms experienced by the creator, some of which refer to an unconfirmed state known as “posthormonal birth control syndrome.”
There are thousands of such videos about the side effects of birth control — but there’s often no way to verify which creators are medical experts or provide accurate information. While most women are not immune to misinformation on social media, young women are more likely to be affected by misinformation on social media.
About 14 percent of women ages 18-25 have considered changing their birth control after finding such information on social media. When women aged 18-29 trust influencers and see them as experts, they tend to choose less effective non-hormonal methods such as fertility tracking, even if they are already using hormonal birth control (Pfender & Caplan, 2025).
Nocebo effect and hormonal birth control
A placebo can make patients feel better because they believe it will. But when patients feel worse than they expect, it’s called the nocebo effect.
An exploratory study by Reid & Webster (2025) examined whether psychological factors associated with the nocebo effect are associated with oral contraceptive (OC) side effects. They used an online survey of 275 young, white women in the United Kingdom to analyze beliefs about medications, expectations of side effects, perceived sensitivity to medications, anxietyand trust in medicine related to reported OC side effects.
Women who expected more side effects believed that drugs were harmful or overused and had less faith in medical development. According to the findings, the more side effects they expected, the more likely they were to stop using contraceptives.
Barriers to leadership stem from politics and lack of trust in medical professionals
Access to contraceptives can change the lives of adults when they have access to them. There are already significant barriers to access, including affordability and contraceptive deserts that lack reasonable access to health centers, primarily affecting low-income and minority groups (Kreitzer, 2021). According to Power to Decide, 19 million women of reproductive age live in contraceptive deserts and therefore need access to publicly funded contraception. An estimated 1.2 million people do not have access to a local health center that offers all birth control options.
In the contraceptive wilderness, women may have to take time off work, find childcare, and sometimes travel long distances, all of which can delay care, be a financial burden, and potentially increase anxiety among young women who already distrust health care.
More roadblocks to access are in the works. In the midst of reforming the Title X Family Planning Program, the Trump administration has removed contraception from it new guide, changing the focus to family formation, healthy pregnancy and birth control, rather than the comprehensive reproductive health services the program was known for.
Essential Social Media Readings
Combating misinformation about birth control and ensuring access
Universal contraception education is a means of public health. Young women with anxiety and disbelief The medical and healthcare professions that rely on social media for information are at risk of having their BCP suspended based on false information.
Health workers, teachers, psychologists and other professionals should be aware of this risk and refer young women to their health care providers for accurate information about contraception. Medical practitioners should be prepared to share with their patients false information spread on social media.
