Birth control pills are an essential medication for women who wish to delay pregnancy. Taking vitamins with your birth control may affect how well your birth control works.

Hormonal birth control contains estrogen, which can make a woman feel nauseated. This nausea can be prevented by making sure to have food in your stomach when you take the pill, but you should also talk to your doctor about other options.

If you are planning to stop using birth control, you might be in for some side effects. The most obvious consequence is that your fertility may improve, increasing your chance of pregnancy. Other potential side effects depend on the person -- and the birth control method.

Azo is the brand name for phenazopyridine hydrochloride. It is also available under other names including Uristat and Pyridium. Azo acts as an analgesic within the urinary tract, so it is commonly recommended for individuals with urinary discomfort from a urinary tract infection (UTI) or recent catheter use.

Plan B, also known as the “morning after pill,” is actually two pills that contain the hormone levonorgestrel. The first pill is taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex; the second pill is taken 12 hours later. A newer formulation--Plan B OneStep--consists of one pill taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex.

Many women who dislike the side effects or administration of the Depo-Provera birth control injection consider making the switch to oral birth control pills.

Family planning allows women to make informed choices regarding when and if they decide to have children. Ultimately, it's your choice to figure out which method, if any, you'd like to use to control reproduction.

Hormonal contraceptives, including the classic birth control pill, shot, ring, patch and "minipill," are very popular methods for preventing unplanned pregnancy. In general, hormone-based birth control methods are safe and associated with few side effects or drug interactions.

Vitex, a medicinal plant also known as monk's pepper or chasteberry, offers several purported medicinal benefits for women coping with infertility, hormonal disturbances, PMS and breast conditions.

Throughout the majority of history, women and couples had to count solely on prayer and luck for family planning. Some couples who desired children were not able to have them. Other couples have desired fewer children or pregnancies that were spaced farther apart, but had trouble accomplishing this goal.

Hormonal birth control has been available to American women since the early 1960s with the introduction of "the pill." Since then, birth control via hormones can also be accomplished with injections, patches, implants and rings, although pills remain the most popular method and the most studied.

Hormonal birth control methods are effective in preventing pregnancy, but can cause hyperpigmentation in some women. Hyperpigmentation, also called melasma, occurs when changing hormone levels cause patches of brown or grayish skin to appear on the face.