Low Dose Birth Control Pills Minimize Side Effects

If you don’t feel ‘normal’ on your current birth control pill, you may be taking the wrong one. Read about these other low dose and ‘ultra low dose’ options before heading back to the doctor to ‘get it right’.

Today’s birth control pills have been designed to contain much lower doses of synthetic hormones than in the 1960’s when ‘The PILL’ (with 50 micrograms of estrogen) first went onto the market. The reason for this is to reduce the side effects of hormonal contraceptives. "That’s still not helped me much", you may be saying but here’s some information about low dose birth control pills that may help you to have a productive ( no pun intended!) discussion with your doctor if you’re not happy with your current birth control pill.

Trial and error with different pill types is worth pursuing -bearing in mind that oral contraceptives are still not the perfect method of birth control for everyone. If you are on the ‘right birth control pill’ to suit your body, you should feel exactly the same way as you do normally, if not a little better. Some women cannot tolerate the estrogen in combined low does pills so are prescribed progestin only pills. Estrogen seemed to be the main culprit where side effects were to blame so ‘low dose birth control pills’ were developed to minimise these.

Pills containing 0.02mg- 0.035mg.of estrogen are classed as ‘low dose’ pills.

Here are some brand names of "low dose" birth control pills :

LoOvral contains 0.03 mg ethinyl estradiol and and 0.3 mg nogestrel
Nordette contains 0.03 mg ethinyl estradiol and 0.15 mg levognorgestrel
Ortho-Cept (Reclipsen, Solia) contains 0.03 mg ethinyl estradiol and 0.15 mg desogestrel
Desogen contains 0.03 mg ethinyl estradiol and 0.15 mg desogestrel
Levlen21 contains 0.03 mg of ethinyl estradiol and 0.15 mg of levonorgestrel
Seasonale/Seasonique contain 0.03mg of ethinyl estradiol and 0.15 mg of levonorgestrel

YASMIN and YAZ are two more low dose birth control pills containing 0.03 mg and 0.02 mg respectively of estrogen but they have a different type of progestin from the other pills called drospirenone (3.0 mg).Yasmin may not be suitable for you if you also take other over-the-counter pain relievers, potassium sparing diuretics, potassium supplements or specific medications so you MUST check this out with a physician first.

Changing hormone levels within your body can result in side effects which vary for every individual.
Keeping hormones at a consistent level in your body is the job of oral contraceptives so that you do not ovulate, your uterine lining thins and your cervical mucous thickens. These three events work together to prevent pregnancy.

Pills such as ALESSE and MIRCETTE are called ‘ultra low dose’ pills as they contain only 0.02mg of estrogen. These oral contraceptives are effective at preventing pregnancy but some women find that they have more spotting and breakthrough bleeding with them than with pills containing 0.03mg or 0.035mg. (considered the norm today) of estrogen. Spotting and breakthrough bleeding often disappear after a few months on a low dose birth control pill.

0.02mg of estrogen is sufficient for contraception but the side effects of spotting and breakthrough bleeding are more common with these types of ultra low dose birth control pills than with low dose birth control pills containing 0.030mg or 0.035mg of estrogen.

Women who prefer ALESSE ((Aviane,Lessina,Lutera,Sronyx) and MIRCETTE say they reduce headaches, mood swings, breast tenderness and bloating. These two brands also may be better for ‘first timer pill users’ as a ‘low estrogen start’ to introducing synthetic hormones into their bodies.

You’ve probably heard of Progestin only pills or ‘mini pills’

These oral contraceptives are 90-95% effective at preventing pregnancy compared to the 99% efficacy rate of combination pills. However, they do not cause the common side effects of estrogen pills such as nausea, breast tenderness and cramps. The risk of developing deep vein thrombosis and cardiovascular disease is lower with progestin only pills. Nursing mothers can use progestin only pills a few weeks after giving birth as progestin does not affect milk supply like estrogen does.

‘Mini pills’ must be taken every day at the same time with no break. If you miss just one pill or take it more than three hours past the regular time, you need to use a backup method of birth control for 48 hours after taking the late pill.

Disadvantage of the ‘mini pill’ – apart from irregular spotting and breakthrough bleeding, is that it can increase the risk of ovarian cysts and ectopic pregnancy.

Latest Update

Low-dose birth control pills may increase risk for heart attack or stroke, especially in women who suffer from polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) or metabolic disorder. However, this risk disappears when you stop taking the low dose birth control pill (according to a Virginia Commonwealth University study published in the July issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism). PCOS is a condition that can affect a woman’s menstrual cycle, fertility, hormones, insulin production, heart, blood vessels and appearance.

"Despite the doubling of risk associated with the pill, the absolute risk for a cardiovascular event in an individual woman taking the pill is low – Women using the pill are not going to automatically have a heart attack," states John Nestler, M.D., professor and chair of the Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism in the VCU School of Medicine. "However, our findings do raise the issue of whether oral contraceptives are optimal therapy for certain groups of women who are at baseline risk or who are taking the pill for a longer time, such as women with PCOS."
Source: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com

So if you don’t have PCOS and you think a low dose birth control pill may suit you better, read more about Alesse and Mircette before asking your doctor which brand would ’suit’ your own medical history. Don’t forget to tell him/her which other medications you are also taking. The on line suppliers I have recommended (on my website) are accredited and also offer the best prices. Don’t forget to collect your free e-book Mircette

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Elizabeth Silverman, obstetrician-gynecologist at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla. Dr. Pamela Deak, obstetrician-gynecologist at the University of California San Diego Medical Center.

By Carole Pemberton Published: 6/25/2008

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 Management Of Chronic Headache

Headache is a very common experienced phenomenon. Many headaches are secondary to underlying medical conditions and therefore, the management chronic headache presents significant difficulties to the physician because of the lack of effective therapies.

Chronic headache affects about 4-5% of adult in the United States. Chronic tension-type headaches (occipital-type headache) and chronic migraine are the most common types of chronic headache. Diagnosis of chronic headache is difficult due to the absence of physical measurements to establish the diagnosis. The overuse of medications to relieve acute headache can cause rebound headache.

Very important to have precise information about the location of the pain, the quality and intensity of the pain; pain triggers, and associated symptoms before implementing the treatment plan.

Chronic migraine has following characteristics:

Lasting from 4 to 72 hours
Unilateral location
Pulsating quality
Moderate to severe intensity
Aggravation by walking stairs or routine physical activities
Association with nausea and vomiting
Photophobia

Migraine headache is commonly triggered by diet, menstrual cycle, and exposure to sunlight or prudent odor. Chronic migraine is defined as the occurrence of migraine attacks 15 or more times per month for more than 6 months.

Chronic tension-type headache has following characteristics:

Pain with pressing quality
Bilateral, occipital or any other location
Mild to moderate intensity
Is not aggravated by walking stairs or routine physical activities
Associated with nausea but not vomiting

Tension-type headache is often associated with muscle tenderness in the neck, shoulder, upper arms, the jaw and face and the base of the skull. Chronic tension-type headache must occur more than 15 times per month for more than 6 months.

Treatment:

Chronic headache is very difficult to treat. In addition, many of the currently available treatment options lack efficacy. For the treatment of moderate to severe migraine pain, triptans are the treatment of choice. Opioids can also be useful as abortive medications when other therapies fail. In today days Botox injection is available as a treatment for chronic migraine as well. Tension-type (occipital) and cluster headache are usually treated with NSAIDS and muscle relaxant as an initial treatment options. Triptans reserved for the cases when initial treatment does not relive the pain. Botox injection plays a big role in current medical management for the treatment of tension-type headache. For the treatment of occipital headache the first line of treatment is pharmaceutical, and the second line of treatment is steroids and/or Botox injection to relive the muscle spasm damaging occipital nerves. The third line of treatment which is the most effective treatment of occipital headache in today days is peripheral nerve stimulation. Electrical stimulation of the occipital nerves permanently eliminates occipital-type of headache pain.

By: Alexander Krakovsky -

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Dr. A. Krakovsky, M.D., PhD., Dr., Sc. is an interventional pain management physician, a professor of medicine and surgery. Dr. Krakovsky leads International Pain Institute in La Jolla, CA providing procedures to elevate pain. Call 858-5519500 or visit internationalpaininstitute.net

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