30 Jul Birth Control Pills- The Pill-Contraception

• Two kinds of birth control pills:
o Combined pill: contains both estrogen and progestin
o Progestin-only pill
• Combined Pill: contains both estrogen and progestin
o Function of the birth control pill:
 To stop the release of an egg,
 To block the movement of sperm.
o The success rate: 92 percent per year in the first year after initial use.
o Main advantages:
 Reduction in PMS symptoms,
 Decrease in menstrual flow,
 Decrease risk for cancer of the endometrium and ovaries,
 Reduction in acne.
o Main disadvantages:
 Do not protect against STDs,
 Must be taken daily,
 May develop blood clots,
 Risk of stroke is higher among women who have hypertension or smokers.
• The progestin-only pill: contains just progestin.
o Action:
 Make the cervical mucus thicker: Sperm cannot get to the egg,
 Make the uterine lining thinner: It doesn’t support implantation,
 May or may not inhibit ovulation,
 Failure rate: 8 per cent: first year of use: after, just 0.3 percent.
o Called the mini-pill
o Advantages:
 Safer to take than combination pills,
 Reduce the menstrual flow,
 Decrease menstrual cramps,
 Decrease the risk of PID, endometrial cancer, and ovarian cancer.
o Disadvantage
 Menstrual irregularity,
 Must be taken daily to be effective.