Changes and determinants of modern contraceptive use among adolescent married girls in India

Unplanned pregnancies among Indian adolescents and young adults remain a public health challenge despite declines over two decades. Effective contraception is crucial to reducing these risks and associated health vulnerabilities. This paper aims to study Spatio-temporal changes in modern contraceptive use among married adolescent girls. Another objective is to identify major controlling socio-economic factors in modern contraceptive use within adolescent girls. The study uses data from all five National Family Health Surveys but mainly targeting 12,301 currently non-pregnant married adolescent girls aged 15–19 year in NFHS-5. Total married adolescent girls were 9445 (NFHS-1), 8276 (NFHS-2), 6842 (NFHS-3), 18,712 (NFHS-4), and 15,584 in NFHS-5. In statistical analysis included prevalence, percentage point change, relative change, bivariate analysis, and binary logistic regression. Data depicts a declining trend in contraceptive non-use among married adolescent girls (15–19 years). Use of short-acting reversible contraceptives (SARC) increased from 2% in NFHS-1 to 19% in NFHS-5. Modern contraceptive use is highest in West Bengal (35%) among the married adolescent girls, followed by Himachal Pradesh (33%) and Assam (29%). Logistic regression showcases that modern method use is slightly higher in urban area among young girls (OR: 1.07, CI: 0.861–1.338) compared to rural girls. Higher educated adolescent girl shows 21% more chance for this practice (OR: 1.21, CI: 0.744–1.964) with comparison to no educated girls. Contraceptive use among adolescent is increasing in India, with declining trend of the non-user percentages indicates the improved awareness and access. The findings from this study offer valuable insights that can inform targeted interventions and policies aimed at fostering a healthier and more empowered adolescent population.