Contraceptive Pill Side Effects
What are the possible side effects of taking birth control pills?
The hormones in these contraceptives can cause some mild to severe side effects. The following are some common side effects associated with birth control pill use:
1) Breast tenderness, enlargement, and pain may occur. However, both breast size and weight do not change significantly.
2) Nausea; vomiting; changes in appetite; bloating; fluid retention; light or irregular menstruation may also accompany birth control pills
3) Spotting (light vaginal bleeding that occurs between periods); breakthrough bleeding (bleeding that occurs while you are on your period); changes in menstrual flow (heavier or lighter periods)
4) Headaches; dizziness
5) Acne
6) Depression; nervousness; fatigue; changes in libido or sex drive
7) Chloasma (yellow-brownish patches on the skin, usually the face); increase in the number and severity of headaches; decreased bone mineral density (thinning bones).
NOTE:
If you have any changes to your health—especially with respect to your moods and thoughts—then consult a doctor immediately.
8) In addition, birth control pills have been known to cause the development of cataracts, benign liver tumors, liver cancer, high blood pressure, and heart disease. This is not a complete list of all side effects. Other rare side effects may be experienced.
Talk with your doctor about any side effect that seems unusual or is especially bothersome. Some women taking contraceptive pills develop a skin condition called “chloasma” also known as melasma. In effect, the oral contraceptive pill reduces freedom of choice regarding family size and individual development because it is not uncommon for a woman to become pregnant while on the pill.
Contraceptive pills are taken to achieve three major effects:
1. Prevent fertilization by inhibiting the release of the egg from the ovary, or prohibiting fertilization altogether.
2. Inhibit the development of a blastocyst even if an egg has been fertilized
3. Implantation is inhibited as a primary effect, but also as a secondary effect of preventing blastocyst development should the primary action fail. To this end, contraceptive pills need to contain both estrogen and progestogen hormones because these hormones work together to inhibit fertility in women with combined oral contraceptive pills containing ethinylestradiol and either levonorgestrel, norethisterone, or norgestimate being most widely used.
The estrogen component of the contraceptive pill works by suppressing the release of gonadotropins and hence reduces the production of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) from the anterior pituitary gland.
These hormones in turn reduce stimulation to the ovaries so that no dominant ovarian follicle will produce an egg, while still allowing some follicular development to take place so as not to totally suppress ovarian function.
What are the possible side effects of birth control pills?
Birth control pills can cause a number of serious side effects. They include blood clots, heart attack, stroke, high blood pressure, and liver tumors. This is not a complete list of all side effects that may occur.
Is there such thing as long-term birth complaints?
Yes. Some birth control pills have been linked to serious health problems months, years or even decades after women stop taking them. Most recently, doctors have begun to look at newer contraceptives containing drospirenone, the same ingredient in Yaz and Yasmin that’s now being blamed for causing blood clots.
There are other warnings on pill packets about the risk of heart attack and stroke but this new research is raising concerns about whether this contraceptive may increase the chance of long-term illness or disability.
contraceptive pill side effects acne:
Many women taking contraceptives are familiar with this problem. For them, acne can be a side effect of the contraceptive pill. However, it is not known exactly how contraceptives have an impact on acne.
There are 3 ways through which contraceptives can contribute to the development of acne :
1) They regulate the production of hormones in the woman’s body. The balance between these hormones makes skin oilier and more prone to clogging. If you take contraceptive pills, your skin tends to have more sebum than usual.
This causes pores to enlarge, making it easy for bacteria to accumulate. If the bacterial population increases, so do inflammation around the hair follicles (which leads to pimples). It also contributes to enlarging pores even further.
2) When the contraceptive pill stops, it causes a “withdrawal effect”. So, when you stop taking them, your acne may actually get worse before it gets better.
3) Contraceptives make the body less sensitive to androgens (male hormones). This can lead to an increase in acne in some women.
When contraceptives are taken orally, they quickly enter the bloodstream through the intestinal mucosa. They are mostly metabolized by cytochrome P450-CYP enzymes of the liver and many other enzymes found in the intestinal wall. After being metabolized, most of these compounds have a great affinity for sex hormone-binding globulin binding sites on hepatic cells.
In addition, trace amounts of estrogenic hormones reach the liver. They are conjugated with glucuronic acid or sulfates before being secreted into the bile and then the intestine, where they undergo enterohepatic recirculation.
contraceptive pill side effects periods:
Some women complain about menstrual problems when taking contraceptives: very heavy periods, bleeding in between periods, and difficult menstruation. The contraceptive pill makes the lining of the uterus thinner.
As a result, there is less blood loss during your period. For some women, this means that their periods no longer fit into their schedules…So instead of getting a normal period every 4 weeks, they get very unpredictable bleeding in between.
This may be annoying but it isn’t dangerous. However, if you keep having light or irregular menstruation for several months after you stop taking contraceptives this may mean that you have a hormonal imbalance that can be corrected with a natural treatment.
contraceptive pill side effects weight gain
There are multiple factors at play here that make this is a bit complicated.
There is no doubt that contraceptives cause weight gain for some women. However, this isn’t necessarily due to an increase in food intake but rather to the fact that contraceptives slow down your metabolism. This means that not only do you burn fewer calories each day (up to 200 kcal less), but you also gain weight faster if you eat too much! To make things worse, estrogen and progesterone (the two female hormones found in contraceptives) stimulate fat accumulation around the waist and hips…hence the “hourglass” figure which many women find attractive.
contraceptive pill side effects mood swings:
It has been shown that all chemicals which influence the levels of serotonin and noradrenaline in your brain can affect your mood and emotions. This means that antidepressants (and thus contraceptives) can make you feel more anxious or depressed. If this happens to you, talk to your doctor about changing your treatment.
contraceptive pill side effects depression:
As far as we know, the contraceptive pill doesn’t cause clinical depression. But some women find it harder to cope with stress when taking contraceptives and may experience low moods and increased irritability. Once they stop taking them, these symptoms generally disappear within a few weeks.
However, if they persist then there is no doubt that this is a sign of an existing depressive illness that has simply been masked by contraceptives…and requires proper medical care!