Expert: Brigid Kowalczyk - 1/24/2006

Question
Question -
I took the birth control patch for about a year. I noticed that I was gaining so much weight, so I had talked to my doctor and she had advised me to switch to the pill. So this is my first month on the pill and I should've got my period last wednesday. Me and my boyfriend were safe during this month of switching even though the doctor had said not to worry. BUt now it is late and I am worry. Is there any possibility I could be even though he has been pulling out and I was taking the birth control, or is it just because my body is confused by the switch?
Answer -
The only way to know if you are pregnant is to get a pregnancy test.  Switching could be the cause of your period being delayed, too.
Followup To - I would just like to let you know so you can post this that my period was 6 days late. I got it and everything is ok.

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Answer
Study Finds Adverse Sexual Side Effects of Birth Control Pills
The birth control pill can have significant adverse effects on sexuality and mood in some women, increasing the likelihood of early discontinuation, according to a study by the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction at Indiana University.

Of the women in the study who started on the pill, 38 percent were still taking it after one year, 47 percent had stopped, and 14 percent had switched to another pill. The women who stopped or changed to another pill were four times as likely to report adverse sexual, emotional and physical side effects as the women who continued with their oral contraceptive. Some of these effects included decrease in sexual thoughts, less frequent intercourse and negative mood changes.

There is no way of predicting which women are likely to experience adverse mood or sexuality effects from oral contraceptives, or which oral contraceptive formulations are more likely to be responsible.   Estrogen can clearly cause breast cancer. There is just no way around it. I cannot think of one clinical indication for birth control pills and believe that no one should use them.

Do birth control chemicals have unpleasant side-effects or health hazards?

Combined OCs

Side effects of birth control pills can include:

•   Increased risk of breast and cervical cancers
•   Increased risk of blood clotting, heart attack and stroke
•   Migraines and headaches
•   Gall bladder disease
•   Increased blood pressure
•   Weight gain
•   Mood changes
•   Acne and/or oily skin
•   Nausea/Vomiting (especially at the beginning)
•   Nausea
•   Irregular bleeding or spotting
•   Benign liver tumors
•   Breast tenderness
•   Yeast overgrowth and infection

Progestin-Only Methods
•   Common Side-Effects (not comprehensive)
o   Untimely bleeding or spotting between periods
o   Prolonged menstrual bleeding (8 days or more)
o   No bleeding at all (amenorrhea) for several months or over a year
o   Headache (very common)
o   Nervousness/anxiety
o   Lower abdominal pain
o   Dizziness
o   Loss of sex drive (libido)
o   Depression
o   Acne and/or oily skin
o   Change of appetite
o   Weight gain
o   Breast tenderness (mastalgia)
o   Increased facial or body hair growth (hirsutism) or hair loss
o   Whitish vaginal discharge (leukorrhea)
o   Excessive growth of body/facial hair or hair loss
o   Infection the implants site for Norplant
o   A brief period of pain or itching
o   Enlarged ovarian follicles
o   Bone density loss


•   Less Common Serious Health Hazards
o   Ectopic pregnancy
o   Cancer

The most important thing to remember about hormonal birth control methods such as the pill is that they are synthetic hormones. It isn't healthy for a woman to be exposed to them.


In fact, their long-term use will invariably increase a woman's risk of developing serious chronic illness. In addition to increasing health risks as dangerous as cancer and blood clots, birth control pills also deplete important nutrients, including vitamins B2, B6 and B12.


The use of birth control pills or synthetic hormones is actually rarely justified. If you're using birth control pills to control menstrual cycles, irregular bleeding, cysts or endometriosis, you are not treating the underlying dysfunction. Instead, you are simply increasing the risks to your health.


It is essential to balance the adrenal glands in these situations, as cortisol levels modulate and control the female hormones, especially progesterone. The pill only treats the symptoms instead of the disease, and causes its own side effects as your body continues to remain in an unhealthy state.


In addition, long term use of the pill will permanently damage your libido, your desire for sex.  Permanently.  It won't come back.

Thank you for letting me know your period started.  I'm sure you are relieved.