Expert: Diane Cheryl - 1/7/2010

Question
Hello,
I've been taking oral contraceptives for about 5 months. I was having problems with a lot of weight gain while taking my current pill, Ocella. My OBGYN switched me to Alesse starting next month which is the lowest dose pill. My question is- Will Alesse still have the same effectiveness in preventing pregnancy? Or is my body accostomed to a higher dose of hormones, therefore the effectiveness will be lower with a greater risk of pregnancy?
Thank you so much for your time.

Answer
Hi Denise,

Thanks for your question. Sometimes women experience different side effects from different brands of birth control pills. So yes, when you switched pills you could alter your cycles or effectiveness of the pill. Do you need to be on birth control pills at this time of your life? If so, is it possible you could switch birth control methods? I don't recommend any kind of hormonal birth control method. I believe that the hormones are unnatural and could affect your health and future fertility. Please email me at CHERYL51@aol.com if you would like to talk to me more. Hope to hear from you soon.

Diane Cheryl