Why it's done

The cervical mucus method is a way to identify fertile times to help you gauge the best days to have or avoid unprotected sex. Tracking your cervical mucus for either fertility or contraception is inexpensive and doesn't have any side effects. Some women choose to use the cervical mucus method for religious reasons.

The cervical mucus method is sometimes combined with another fertility awareness method, such as tracking basal body temperature. You might also use an electronic fertility monitor to measure hormone levels in your urine, which can tell you which days you're fertile. This combination of approaches is sometimes referred to as the symptothermal or symptohormonal method.