Can we trust an app for pregnancy protection?

Hormone-free birth control is trending among lifestyle and fitness social media influencers, but experts warn that fertility-tracking apps do not work for every woman

Pic: iStock

“It’s through social media that I started seeing all these influencers switching from hormonal contraception like the pill to fertility tracker apps. They made the ‘natural period’ look glamorous,” says Rachel Moore, a 28-year-old PE teacher from Waterford.

Just last year, Moore, who had been taking oral contraception since the age of about 17 or 18, decided to switch from the contraceptive pill to condoms. She says she felt motivated by “whispers” within her friendship group of a collective shift away from hormonal contraception towards a “more natural, empowering” approach.