Two Australian doctors are advocating a more natural approach to family planning. John and Evelyn Billings say the Billings Ovulation Method (BOM) is a much better and more reliable approach to family planning as it works in harmony with nature.

They argue that there is too much dependence on artificial methods of family planning, which are not totally safe or successful. Using BOM on the other hand is totally safe as there are no drugs or devices involved.

The method advocated by the Billings’ is apparently based on an approach called the Rhythm Method which has been around since the 1930s, when it was superseded by more artificial approaches such as the ‘pill’.

The Billings’ believe people should return to a more natural approach. They also argue that their own method is better than the Rhythm Method since the latter requires females to calculate the total days when ovulation takes place. The couple suggest this can lead to mistakes.

The Billings’ have been researching natural family planning for decades and have millions of followers; the latest is China, in which there are more than 50,000 teachers including gynaecologists and other doctors.

Speaking with reporters recently, Dr Chan Lek Lim who is president of the Natural Fertility Awareness Service of Malaysia (NFASM) said: “It’s a scientific fact that while men are always fertile, women are, most times, infertile and BOM, a simple, yet highly dependable natural method of family planning with a reliability rate greater than 99 per cent, teaches women, first and foremost, to be able to identify fertility and infertility and to then apply certain rules to avoid pregnancy.”