Contraception Choices of US Foreign-Born Women: What Matters?

Using contraception is a smart way to prevent unexpected pregnancies. But did you know that women who were born in other countries and now live in the US are less likely to use it compared to women born here? This study wanted to figure out why that is. They looked at data from a big survey done in 2017-2019. They focused on 708 foreign-born women who were between 15 and 49 years old and had info about their first pregnancies. The study found that about 7 out of 10 of these women used contraception before their first pregnancy. The researchers found some things that made a difference. Women who had more education, were older, had a religion, had more money, had health insurance, and were from certain racial or ethnic backgrounds were more likely to use contraception. But women who were Black or from other mixed races were less likely to use it. This study is saying that public health workers should pay attention to these things when they're trying to help foreign-born women make good choices about contraception. It's also important to be respectful of different beliefs and cultures when it comes to contraception.