Birth Control Options: Side Effects, Effectiveness & Safety

For individuals selecting a contraceptive method, understanding the balance between effectiveness, hormonal impacts, and potential side effects is critical for long-term health.

Pill

How to Lose Weight After Going Off Ortho Tri-Cyclen

Ortho Tri-Cyclen contains a combination of female hormones that prevents ovulation or release of eggs from the ovary. It is a popular contraception pill that also causes changes in your cervical mucus and uterine lining, making it difficult for the sperm to reach the uterus.

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Birth Control Pills & Elevated Liver Enzymes

Many women choose oral contraception because it effectively prevents unplanned conceptions and otherwise fits well with their lives. Some women do experience side effects, including elevated liver enzymes.

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Stack of birth control pills

Birth Control Advantages and Disadvantages

Birth control is available in a variety of methods, from natural family planning to an intrauterine device, condoms, pills, rings and patches. Each method has advantages and disadvantages in terms of convenience, potential side effects and pregnancy prevention.

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African man standing on scale

Bad Side Effects of Depo-Provera

Depo-Provera (medroxyprogesterone acetate) is an injectible form of birth control for women that prevents pregnancy by stopping the ovaries from releasing eggs. This medication is a man-made (synthetic) hormone that is similar to the naturally-occurring hormone called progesterone.

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Girl about to take a pill

The Morning After Pill Effects

Emergency contraception pills, called EC and often referred to as the morning after pill, are hormone pills designed to prevent pregnancy. EC pills stop pregnancy in different ways, depending on where a woman is in her menstrual cycle when taken.

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NY Federal Judge Overrules FDA Over-The-Counter Ban On Emergency Contraception Pill

How Effective Is Plan B if Taken Within 12 Hours?

Approximately 50 percent of pregnancies in the United States are unintended, according to a February 2014 report in the American Journal of Public Health. Plan B is one of several methods of emergency contraception to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex or a birth control failure.

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Amenorrhea & Birth Control Pills

Amenorrhea can be a scary experience for some women and welcomed by others. This is a normal event that happens in a woman's life due to pregnancy or menopause. At times in the menstrual cycle, women may experience cycles of amenorrhea.

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Different Types of Family Planning Methods

All sexually active adults must consider family planning issues. According to the World Health Organization, family planning is not just about preventing pregnancy, but also about timing conception so that every baby is wanted and planned.

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Winter portrait of beautiful pregnant woman

How to Get Pregnant If Your Partner Had a Vasectomy

A vasectomy makes a man permanently unable to impregnate a woman. It is typically very effective, with only 15 out of 10,000 couples getting pregnant the first year after the vasectomy is performed, according to the American Academy of Family Physicians.

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Negative Side Effects of Condoms

The purpose of using condoms is twofold: to prevent pregnancy and reduce the chances that a sexually transmitted disease will be given to a partner. Condoms are sheaths (barrier protection) that are worn on the male penis during sexual intercourse and can be made of latex, plastic or natural skin.

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close-up of a strip of pills

Side Effects of Birth Control Pills While Breastfeeding

When a nursing mother is evaluating medications for herself, she must consider how possible side effects will impact her as well as her child. Many medications, including hormonal birth control pills, can pass through her breast milk to her child.

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List of Birth Control Pill Brands

Birth control pills are a popular way for women to prevent an unwanted pregnancy. All types of birth control pills contain synthetic forms of the hormones estrogen and progesterone, though some pills may only contain one type of hormone.

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Young woman with packet of pills, smiling, close-up

Birth Control & Green Tea

Green tea contains many compounds which are beneficial for your health, including antioxidants. In addition, green tea has been used as a natural treatment for a number of health conditions, including sunburns, overweight and cholesterol level control.

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NY Federal Judge Overrules FDA Over-The-Counter Ban On Emergency Contraception Pill

What Is the Duration of Plan B Side Effects?

Emergency contraception -- otherwise known as the morning-after pill -- is a safe and effective method to prevent pregnancy if your birth control method failed or you had unprotected sex. Plan B, a brand of emergency contraception, comes in 2 strengths.

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Happy couple in the morning

Benefits of Yasmin

Yasmin is a birth control medication approved for the prevention of pregnancy. It is composed of two hormones -- drospirenone and ethinyl estradiol -- which work in combination to prevent pregnancy through different mechanisms.

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Baby few minutes after the birth

Differences Between Low Birth Weight & Preterm Infants

Low birth weight and preterm infants are extremely vulnerable to a variety of problems, including difficulty thriving and maintaining their blood sugar levels. Some babies have a low birth weight because they are premature, while others have a low birth weight even though they are born close to term.

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Playing With A Condom

The Disadvantages of the Female Condom

Female condoms have many benefits. They are effective against sexually transmitted infections and pregnancy. Perhaps the best benefit of the female condom is that it's a female-controlled device that doesn't rely on prescription medications to prevent pregnancy.

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