title: Molecular medicine and population control.
abstract: As we uncover the physiological and molecular mechanisms behind human reproduction, we gain the potential to exert more control over our reproductive capabilities. In the past two decades, the prospects for 'infertile' women to bear children, or 'sterile' men to father them, have improved dramatically; recently, women have given birth in their sixties, well beyond their natural menopause. Thanks to developments in contraception, couples can now enjoy an active sex-life without a significant risk of pregnancy, and more accurately control the size and timing of their families. But these new freedoms have a price: they also have the potential to cause demographic distortions, medical harm to individuals and abuse of human rights.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Senior
mesh_terms: D003267:Contraception / Q000639:trends; D003269:Contraception, Immunologic; D003270:Contraceptive Agents; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011155:Population Control; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases
chemical_list: D003270:Contraceptive Agents