World Contraception Day: Are birth control pills safe? Know the long term effects of birth control

World Contraception Day is observed on September 26 every year to raise awareness about contraception and enable people to make informed decisions when it comes their reproductive health. There are many doubts in people’s minds when we talk about contraception, especially those using it for the first time. One of the most widely used contraception ways is birth control pills. 

Birth control is a way for men and women to prevent pregnancy. Dr Leena Bhatnagar, Senior Consultant – Obs and Gynae, Max Super Specialist Hospital, Shalimar Bagh explains that birth control is an effective way to prevent pregnancy, if taken correctly it is up to 99.9 % effective. “It is not only useful for pregnancy prevention but also effective to treat health problems like PCOS, endometriosis and irregular periods.” 

We asked Dr Leena Bhatnagar about the long-term effects of birth control, and here is what she has to say. 

“Birth control pills contain very small amount of estrogen and progestin hormone. There are various set of combination of these hormones in different contraceptive pills. There are monophasic pills, bi & triphasic pills according to estrogen progestin ratio. The most common and popular among these is monophasic pills.”

She further explained that mini pills are the pills with only progestin hormone, so not having estrogen side effect and can be given to lactating mothers but these are slightly less effective then combined pills. So, these pills are well accepted by the body. 

However, some women might experience slight changes in their body and side effects may include “headache, nausea, breast tenderness, irregular spotting, and slight weight gain.” 

Dr Bhatnagar recommends taking extra precautions for people who have a history of heart disease, uncontrolled diabetes, migraine, blood clot, stroke, liver disease, breast or uterus cancer. For those who are healthy and do not suffer from any other health problems should check for possible risks with their gynaecologist annually. 

“Some studies suggest that regular consumption of contraception pills can increase the chances of breast and cervical cancer. However, the increased risk come after at least 10 years of stopping the pills.” 

So, there are certain complications that might affect you without the proper use of birth control pills. Make sure you consult a professional doctor before the use of any contraceptive pills.  

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