Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Birth Spacing: Achieving Gender Equality Under Sustainable Development Goals

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Gender Equality

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals ((ENUNSDG))

On a global perspective, approximately 225 million women in the world have no access to family planning and therefore little control over whether and when they become pregnant. Providing women across the world with the choice to use effective contraception and to space their babies by 24 months or more, would prevent 54 million unintended pregnancies, 79,000 maternal deaths and 1.1 million infant deaths. The findings of these results stress the importance of birth spacing plans for optimal child health. Family planning is a key international priority that should not only be regarded as an intervention for improving health, but also as a human right.

- Professor Lesley Regan, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Afeworki R, Smits J, Tolboom J, van der Ven A (2015) Positive effect of large birth intervals on early childhood hemoglobin levels in Africa is limited to girls: cross-sectional DHS study. Sear R, ed. PLoS One 10(6):e0131897. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0131897

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ahmed S, Li Q, Liu L, Tsui AO (2012) Maternal deaths averted by contraceptive use: an analysis of 172 countries. Lancet 380:111–125

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Akoijam BS, Hanjabam SD, Longjam UD, Thangjam DN (2005) Knowledge and attitude of males regarding birth spacing and contraception. Indian J Public Health 49(1):30–31. Erratum in: Indian J Public Health. 2005;49(2):56

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Amin R, Mariam AG, Faruqee R (1987) Trends and differentials in knowledge, ever use, current use, and future intended use of contraceptives in rural Bangladesh: evidence from three surveys. Pak Dev Rev 26(2):201–214

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Azmat SK, Ali M, Hameed W, Mustafa G, Abbas G, Ishaque M, Bilgrami M, Temmerman M (2014) A study protocol: using demand-side financing to meet the birth spacing needs of the underserved in Punjab Province in Pakistan. Reprod Health 11:39

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barclay KJ, Kolk M (2017) The long-term cognitive and socioeconomic consequences of birth intervals: a within-family sibling comparison using Swedish register data. Demography 54(2):459–484. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13524-017-0550-x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bawah AA, Akweongo P, Simmons R, Phillips JF (1999) Women’s fears and men’s anxieties: the impact of family planning on gender relations in northern Ghana. Stud Fam Plan 30(1):54–66

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Begna Z, Assegid S, Kassahun W, Gerbaba M (2013) Determinants of inter birth interval among married women living in rural pastoral communities of southern Ethiopia: a case control study. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth 13:116. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2393-13-116

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Canning D, Schultz TP (2012) The economic consequences of reproductive health and family planning. Lancet 380(9837):165–171

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cleland J et al (2012) Contraception and health. Lancet 380(9837):149–156. http://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/PIIS0140-6736(12)60609-6.pdf. Accessed Oct 2019

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Conde-Agudelo A, Rosas-Bermudez A, Kafury-Goeta AC (2006) Birth spacing and risk of adverse perinatal outcomes: a meta-analysis. JAMA 295(15):1809–1823

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Connor PM (2011) Benefits of birth spacing – a community health education programme with Somali migrants in Malta. Migrant Health Unit Department of Primary Health, Malta

    Google Scholar 

  • DaVanzo J, Rahman M, Razzaque A, Grammich C (2004) Do family planning services affect choice of abortion method in Bangladesh? Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Population Association of America, Boston

    Google Scholar 

  • Fayehun OA, Omololu OO, Isiugo-Abanihe UC (2011) Sex of preceding child and birth spacing among Nigerian ethnic groups. Afr J Reprod Health 15(2):79–89

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Foster G, Holley C et al (2014) Family Planning Topic Guide, DFID/HEART. http://www.heartresources.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Family-Planning-Topic-Guide.pdf?x30250

  • Grundy E, Kravdal Ø (2014) Do short birth intervals have long-term implications for parental health? Results from analyses of complete cohort Norwegian register data. J Epidemiol Community Health 68(10):958–964. https://doi.org/10.1136/jech-2014-204191

  • Haile K, Gebremedhin M, Berhane H, Gebremedhin T, Abraha A, Berhe N, Haile T, Gigar G, Girma Y (2016) Desire for birth spacing or limiting and non-use of long acting and permanent contraceptive methods among married women of reproductive age in Aksum Town. North Ethiopia Contracept Reprod Med 1:22. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40834-016-0033-2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hailu D, Gulte T (2016) Determinants of short interbirth interval among reproductive age mothers in Arba Minch District. Ethiopia Int J Reprod Med 2016:6072437. https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/6072437

  • Higher Population Council, The Government of Jordan, The Impacts of Healthy Birth spacing in Jordan, May 2013

    Google Scholar 

  • Houle B, Stein A, Kahn K, Sangeetha M, Mark C, Stephen M, Samuel J (2013) Household context and child mortality in rural South Africa: the effects of birth spacing, shared mortality, household composition and socio-economic status. Int J Epidemiol 42(5):1444–1454. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyt149

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • https://cchealth.org/birth-spacing/benefits.php

  • https://dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dph/files/birthspacingfaq.pdf. Accessed 16 Sept 2019

  • https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/birth+spacing">birth spacing</a (https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/birth+spacing)

  • https://www.marchofdimes.org/MOD-Birth-Spacing-Factsheet-November-2015.pdf. Accessed 16 Sept 2019

  • https://www.telethonkids.org.au/news%2D%2Devents/news-and-events-nav/2014/july/new-evidence-on-the-importance-of-birth-spacing/

  • Jin H (1995) A study of rural women’s decision-making power on reproduction and fertility. Chin J Popul Sci 7(3):241–257

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kazi S, Sathar ZA (1986) Productive and reproductive choices: report of a pilot survey of urban working women in Karachi. Pak Dev Rev 25(4):593–608

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lane C, Joof YM, Hassan AA, Pryor S (2012) Promoting healthy timing and spacing of pregnancy with young married women in Northern Nigeria: a short report. Afr J Reprod Health 16(2):263–269

    Google Scholar 

  • Lehnertz NB, Alam A, Ali NA, Henry EG, Williams EK, Rahman SM, Ahmed S, El Arifeen S, Baqui AH, Winch PJ (2013) Local understandings and current barriers to optimal birth intervals among recently delivered women in Sylhet District, Bangladesh Int Health 5(4):266–272. https://doi.org/10.1093/inhealth/iht031. Epub 2013 Nov 18

  • Mita R, Simmons R (1995) Diffusion of the culture of contraception: program effects on young women in rural Bangladesh. Stud Fam Plan 26(1):1–13

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mundle M, Haldar A, Baur B, Haldar S, Chattopadhyay S, Soren AB (2011) Perceptions of couples about contraception in eastern India. Southeast Asian J Trop Med Public Health 42(2):395–401

    Google Scholar 

  • Perin J, Walker N (2015) Potential confounding in the association between short birth intervals and increased neonatal, infant, and child mortality. Glob Health Action 8. https://doi.org/10.3402/gha.v8.29724

  • Rajaretnam T, Deshpande RV (1992) Popularizing spacing methods of family planning in rural areas: the perception of programme personnel and the community in Karnataka. J Inst Econ Res 27(1):25–34

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rasheed P, Al-Dabal BK (2007) Birth interval: perceptions and practices among urban-based Saudi Arabian women. East Mediterr Health J 13(4):881–892

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Saha UR, van Soest A (2013) Contraceptive use, birth spacing, and child survival in Matlab. Bangladesh Stud Fam Plann 44(1):45–66

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salway S, Nurani S (1998) Postpartum contraceptive use in Bangladesh: understanding users’ perspectives. Stud Fam Plan 29(1):41–57

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Say L, Chou D, Gemmill A, Tuncalp O, Moller A, Daniels J, Gulmezoglu A, Temmerman M and Alkema L (2014) Global causes of maternal death: a WHO systematic analysis 2(6):e323–33. E-pub 2014 May 5

    Google Scholar 

  • Sebastian MP, Khan ME, Roychowdhury S (2010) Promoting healthy spacing between pregnancies in India: need for differential education campaigns. Patient Educ Couns 81(3):395–401. Epub 2010 Nov 18. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2010.10.019

  • Shachar BZ, Mayo JA, Lyell DJ, Baer RJ, Jeliffe-Pawlowski LL, Stevenson DK, Shaw GM (2016) Interpregnancy interval after live birth or pregnancy termination and estimated risk of preterm birth: a retrospective cohort study. BJOG Int J Obstet Gynaecol 123:2009. National Library of Medicine. PMID: 27405702. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-0528.14165

  • Singh KK, Suchindran CM, Singh V, Ramakumar R (1993) Analysis of birth intervals in India’s Uttar Pradesh and Kerala States. J Biosoc Sci 25(2):143–153

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Stover J, McKinnon R, Winfrey B (2010) Spectrum: a model platform for linking maternal and child survival interventions with AIDS, family planning and demographic projections. Int J Epidemiol 39:i7–i10. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyq016

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • The Economist (2009) The baby bonanza. http://www.economist.com/node/14302837

  • Van Soest A, Saha UR (2018) Relationships between infant mortality, birth spacing and fertility in Matlab, Bangladesh. Olusanya BO, ed. PLoS One 13(4):e0195940. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0195940

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • World Health Organization (2006) Report of a technical consultation on birth spacing, Geneva 13–15 June 2005. Department of Making Pregnancy Safer and Department of Reproductive Health and Research (RHR), World Health Organization, Geneva

    Google Scholar 

  • World Health Organization (2015) Family planning/contraception. Fact sheet N degree 351

    Google Scholar 

  • Yadav B, Pandey S (2018) Study of knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding birth spacing and methods available for spacing in rural Haryana, India. Int J Reprod Contracept Obstet Gynecol 7:1389

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yohannes S, Wondafrash M, Abera M, Girma E (2011) Duration and determinants of birth interval among women of childbearing age in Southern Ethiopia. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth 11:38. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2393-11-38

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Education Expert at Ernst & Young LLP, State Vision Evaluation Team, Bhopal, India

    S. M. Haider Rizvi

  2. Independent Researcher, Bhopal, India

    Arpana N. Tirkey

Authors
  1. S. M. Haider Rizvi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Arpana N. Tirkey
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. European School of Sustainability, Hamburg University of Applied Sciences, Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    Walter Leal Filho

  2. Center for Neuroscience & Cell Biology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Anabela Marisa Azul

  3. Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, Passo Fundo University Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, Passo Fundo, Brazil

    Luciana Brandli

  4. HAW Hamburg, Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    Amanda Lange Salvia

  5. International Centre for Thriving, University of Chester, Chester, UK

    Tony Wall

Section Editor information

  1. Department of Sociology and Social Work, Rani Durgavati University, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India

    Chhabi Kumar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Rizvi, S.M.H., Tirkey, A.N. (2020). Birth Spacing: Achieving Gender Equality Under Sustainable Development Goals. In: Leal Filho, W., Azul, A.M., Brandli, L., Lange Salvia, A., Wall, T. (eds) Gender Equality. Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-70060-1_19-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-70060-1_19-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-70060-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-70060-1

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Earth and Environm. ScienceReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Earth and Environmental Sciences

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation