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Got a health condition? Know your birth control options!
There is an effective birth control option for everyone—including those with health conditions like heavy or irregular periods, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, or breast cancer. Some methods can actually help treat certain conditions. Let’s look at six fairly common medical conditions and the birth control methods that are best for each. 1. Painful or […]
The pill, only when you get lucky
What if there was a birth control pill you didn’t need to take every. single. day ? If you like the sound of a pill that works to prevent pregnancy when taken within a few hours of sex, you’re not alone. Researchers call this a “pericoital pill”—with “peri” meaning around and “coital” meaning sex. In […]
Birth control for breastfeeding moms
Now that your bundle of joy has come, it’s time to snuggle up with that new-baby smell and settle into being a mom. Between that and dealing with the effects of sleep deprivation— going to the grocery store in pajamas, falling into bed right after dinner, and drooling in public —you’ve got enough to worry […]
Stress, depression, and birth control…
Feeling stressed or depressed can make it harder to do all kinds of basic things —like get to work or school, sleep well, and make decisions. Turns out it can also make it harder to stay on top of your birth control. The study Almost 700 women in Michigan, ages 18-19, took part in a […]
What’s in a birth control label?
Any prescription birth control method you buy in the United States comes with a square of delicately thin paper, folded until it won’t fold any more, covered in teeny-tiny print. It’s called a “package insert” or a “label”—and it may be telling you lies. First, some history… It wasn’t so long ago that there was […]
Starting the pill: How about now?
Sometimes old ideas die hard. One good example is the old idea that you have to start taking the pill on a Sunday, or start it five days after your period begins. Research has shown that this is just plain wrong. Out with the old… In the old days, health care providers often advised women […]
Good call, ladies! IUD use is up in the U.S.
When a lot of people start doing something new—say, using an IUD for birth control instead of the pill —it takes a few years for researchers to catch up with them. That’s why we’re just hearing now , thanks to the latest analysis of the National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG) , that way more […]
Black market birth control? Let’s go with no…
While not everyone agrees that birth control pills should be available over-the-counter in the U.S., it’s clear that there’s a demand for effective methods women can use without a prescription. How else to explain recent stories about women buying birth control on Craigslist and the yerberias of Arizona ? Cost may be a factor for […]
Gold-standard birth control: The IUD and the implant
In terms of effectiveness, not all birth control methods are created equal. And if there was any doubt as to which methods stand out in that arena, an article by the folks behind the Contraceptive CHOICE Project (just published in the New England Journal of Medicine ) should put it to rest. The Contraceptive CHOICE […]
Ovarian cysts: No biggie, but birth control can help
Patients almost always have the same look on their face when we talk about ovarian cysts. It’s that look of, “OMG, I have a ticking time-bomb in my pelvis!” I worry that they imagine a giant green blob growing larger and larger inside them, like a Chia pet , that might one day suddenly explode. […]
