When you're like me and despise children, birth control seems like a good option. You just have to pop a pill, and then you don't have to worry about annoying children. Worldwide, over 150 million women use birth control. Most birth control contain synthetic hormones and with such widespread use, it's easy to forget about the dangers of birth control.
Let's start with how birth control works. There is two types of birth control. The first is a man made pill that combines estrogen and progesthrone. This one works by the hormones in the pills prevent pregnancy by suppressing your pituitary gland, which stops the development and release of the egg in the ovary (ovulation.) The progestin also helps to prevent the sperm from reaching the egg and changes the lining of the uterus. The second is a progestin only mini-pill. This one has only one hormone (progestin) and is called either the “progestin-only pill,” or the “mini-Pill.” It works by stopping ovulation and by helping to prevent the male’s sperm from reaching the egg.
By loading your body up with so many hormones, the body thinks its pregnant, so it doesn't have a period. Of course the woman is more likely to get something like a blood clot. This all depends on the birth control that you're taking, the level of estrogen and hormones it has, and your overall general health. When your body thinks you're pregnant, you experience similar symptoms of early pregnancy. These are listed below.
While you get all the same symptoms from pregnancy, but it is a better option than being pregnant. When you're pregnant, you have loads of estrogen and are more likely to to get a blood clot. Also you don't end up with an 18 year long, parasitic commitment when you're not pregnant anymore. If you're not healthy in general, you're more likely to get a blood clot and all the side effects below, will all be worse.
Larger breasts
Weight gain or loss
Reduced or increased acne
Slight nausea
Emotional sensitivity right before your period
Mood swings throughout your cycle
Irregular bleeding or spotting
Breast tenderness
Decreased libido
The more serious side effects include:
Increased risk of cervical and breast cancers
Increased risk of heart attack and stroke
Migraines
Higher blood pressure
Gall bladder disease
Infertility
Benign liver tumors
Decreased bone density
Yeast overgrowth and potentially an infection
Increased risk of blood clotting
All of a sudden, birth control seems less desirable. When you don't want kids or don't want at the moment, and end up taking birth control for years on end, pills will destroy the beneficial bacteria in your intestines. This makes you more likely to yeast overgrowth. Which will then lead to lower immunity and infection. After taking birth control for years and years, it's no wonder that women are more likely to get chronic diseases like cancer.
Most birth control come in packs of 28 pills. The first 21 pills are hormones and the last seven are placebos. Sometimes birth control is necessary for unwanted pregnancies but you should consider better options like condoms for both men and women. Also diaphragm or cervical cups are helpful and effective. Birth control is a good option for short term solutions but not good for a long term solutions. Or like me, you can just get your tubes tied as soon as possible. Below are more birth contraceptives and the effectiveness they have.
Most Helpful Opinions