--- title: IUDs Most Effective for Birth Control, Doctors Group Says description: A boost for a little-used but widely effective method of contraception canonical: https://time.com/3444920/iud-pregnancy/ author: Maya Rhodan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-09-29T12:47:12.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:45:23.569Z article:section: Health og:title: IUDs Most Effective for Birth Control, Doctors Group Says og:description: A boost for a little-used but widely effective method of contraception og:url: https://time.com/3444920/iud-pregnancy/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc280a59ef366a8da/6986958be53aba38144d2f04/copper-iud.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5616 og:image:height: 3159 og:image:alt: A copper IUD og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: IUDs Most Effective for Birth Control, Doctors Group Says twitter:description: A boost for a little-used but widely effective method of contraception twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc280a59ef366a8da/6986958be53aba38144d2f04/copper-iud.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Doctors Advise IUD Use as Best Birth Control Method for Teenagers > Sponsored content. 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Health Matters is TIME's daily health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free daily newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ## Video: IUD: Breaking Down The Myths [Watch (HLS stream): IUD: Breaking Down The Myths](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/pA1pVngw.m3u8) (4:52)  _Published 2014-06-30. IUD: Breaking Down The Myths_ by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Sep 29, 2014 12:47 PM UTC  A copper IUD A copper IUD B. Boissonnet—BSIP/Corbis by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Sep 29, 2014 12:47 PM UTC A leading medical group on Monday [recommended](http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2014/09/24/peds.2014-2299.full.pdf) implantable rods and [intrauterine devices (IUDs)](http://time.com/the-best-form-of-birth-control-is-the-one-no-one-is-using/) as the best form of birth control for teenage girls other than abstinence. The new guidance from the [American Academy of Pediatrics](http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2014/09/24/peds.2014-2299.full.pdf) (AAP), published Monday in the group’s [_Pediatrics_](http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2014/09/24/peds.2014-2299.full.pdf)journal, touts birth control methods not commonly used in the U.S. despite widespread agreement about their effectiveness. The AAP says pediatricians, who teens consider “a highly trusted source of sexual health information,” should recommend, in decreasing order of effectiveness, progestin implants, IUDs, injectable contraception, and oral contraception for use among adolescents. (**MORE:** [The best form of birth control is the one nobody is using](http://time.com/the-best-form-of-birth-control-is-the-one-no-one-is-using/)) The doctors call oral contraceptives the least effective options for teens because many fail to use them properly and consistently. About 18% of women experience an unintended pregnancy when using male condoms, compared to 0.8% who experience unintended pregnancy while utilizing a Copper T IUD. Though IUDs are expensive at the outset, the AAP says the long-term cost is less than the cost of over-the-counter oral contraceptives. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3444920/iud-pregnancy/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3444920/iud-pregnancy/"},"headline":"Doctors Advise IUD Use as Best Birth Control Method for Teenagers","datePublished":"2014-09-29T12:47:12.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:45:23.569Z","description":"A boost for a little-used but widely effective method of contraception","url":"https://time.com/3444920/iud-pregnancy/","keywords":["Sex/Relationships","Living","Contraceptives","Sexual Health","Birth Control","IUD"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc280a59ef366a8da/6986958be53aba38144d2f04/copper-iud.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Maya Rhodan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc280a59ef366a8da/6986958be53aba38144d2f04/copper-iud.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"A copper IUD","caption":"A copper IUD","creditText":"B. 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