Earth Day Reminder: Birth Control is Green!
Kirsten Moore is a consultant for the Reproductive Health Technologies Project (RHTP). It’s almost Earth Day and you’re thinking about what you can do to help the planet. An article blaming your birth control pill for a plethora of environmental woes, from intersex fish to male prostate cancer, shows up in your twitter feed. So, […]
Should the pill be available over the counter?
In 2012, a small Pennsylvania college made national headlines for putting packs of the emergency contraceptive pill Plan B in a vending machine in their student health center. Imagine the uproar if that vending machine had packs of the pill in it, too. Selling the pill in a vending machine wouldn’t be legal in the […]
Risky business 2: Migraines, high blood pressure, and blood clots
I’ve written before that accidental pregnancy is the most serious health risk of many birth control methods. But there are other risks to consider, too. All modern methods of birth control can have positive and negative side effects—Bedsider has information about both for each method. Hopefully anyone who wants to avoid a pregnancy can find […]
The ring’s got perks
Heavy periods affect lots of women, with consequences ranging from annoyance to missed days at work or school. We know from previous research that the pill and the hormonal IUD can help reduce heavy menstrual bleeding and increase women’s sense of well-being. But new research from Egypt shows that the ring is another good option […]
IUD use is up—but not when it comes to emergency contraception
The good news: U.S. women with health insurance are increasingly opting for low-cost IUDs . New research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) showed a sixfold increase in IUD use by insured women from 2002 to 2008. The increase was less dramatic among women under 25, even though the IUD has now […]
Science gets behind using the pill for pain
Ever stayed home during your period with cramps so bad you wished you didn’t have uterus? As many as one in seven young women have. A new study from Sweden shows that women who use the pill have significantly less painful periods than those who don’t. Women in the study answered questions about birth control […]
Know what’s risky? Pregnancy.
A new study from the Harbor UCLA Medical Center asked women from all walks of life to rate the risks of pregnancy versus birth control. The 246 women of all ages, education levels, and family sizes knew about some risks, but didn’t know which were more likely to occur. About half of the participants knew […]
The FDA weighs in on blood clots and birth control
We’ve written before about concerns that some brands of the pill (along with the patch ) carry a higher risk of blood clots than others. Last week, the FDA officially concluded that the benefits of the brands in question outweigh the drawbacks, but that their labels should be updated to warn of the higher blood […]
Some good news about birth control and heart health
With all the recent press about the pill and blood clots, you may be wondering if you should be worried about heart health while using birth control. Fear not, a new study shows that women using progestin-only methods—like the implant , the mini-pill, and the shot —were no more likely to have a heart attack […]
Late, late, for a very important pill?
First, the short answer: If you miss a pill, you should take the pill you missed as soon as you can. If you take the pill less than 24 hours after you were supposed to and it’s not the first week of a new pack, you don’t need a back-up method —just take the pill […]
