Researchers have found that teenage girls taking low-dose oral contraceptives showed abnormally low levels of bone growth, and sometimes even lost density, compared with teens who took birth control pills with a higher dose of estrogen. The researchers stated that the girls who need oral contraceptives should be informed of the benefits of higher estrogen levels. The study included 82 girls in their middle to late teens a period during which they should be accumulating bone density.
Some Birth Control Pills Safer Than Others
According to European researchers the composition of a woman’s contraceptive pill influences her risk of developing blood clots of the leg and lungs. Scientists have known for quite some time now that oral contraceptives, which contain the female hormones estrogen and progestogen, increase the likelihood of deep vein thrombosis of the leg and pulmonary embolism, but new studies in Denmark and the Netherlands determined that some pills are safer than others. Neither study received funding from any companies that make oral contraceptives.
A first message from the studies is that “the risk when you are taking an oral contraceptive depends on both the estrogen dose and the progestogen dose, and the lower the dose, the less risk,” Lidegaard said. Both studies found that the risk decreases with the length of time a woman takes a combination pill, and that progestogen-only pills and the use of hormone-releasing intrauterine devices are not associated with an increased risk.
For women who want to use an oral contraceptive and are at higher risk because of obesity or a family history of venous thromboembolism, “it would be wise to take a second-generation product,” Lidegaard said.
About The Editor - Lisa Macfarlane is a professional health writer and editor who specializes in sexual health and health issues.
