Contraceptives

You know that I will not and have never recommended the contraceptive patch on this site, except to warn you about the risks if you really want to use it. A Public Citizen petition has just been filed demanding withdrawal of the contraceptive patch from the market within six months. If by chance you are still using a contraceptive patch, I’m making a personal plea to you now not to continue using it, even for another six months. “When in doubt, leave it out” girls, as there are many more types of contraceptives to choose from with lesser risks. Why take a risk, even for another six months, with a contraceptive that has had so many negative reports from users, bad publicity and law suits attached to it? The package should come with its own red flashing light and siren sound - not just an amended warning label!

Is the FDA (or more correctly, Johnson and Johnson) using women as lab rats?

When a packaged food item in a product batch is tampered with or suspected of placing consumers at risk, it is recalled immediately and supermarkets sweep it off their shelves. In the case of the contraceptive patch, it could not be confirmed that the level of estrogen was consistent in each batch! The FDA agreed that further studies needed to be done on a product that they knew (2 years ago) affected blood clotting and could place women in danger of strokes. Was the product swept off the shelves? No. The FDA just kept amending the label warning (3 times!) and left women to make a decision about its risks without providing them with the full facts.

It’s not as though the patch is the best or only contraceptive in the world. What is the FDA waiting for, further ‘free’ evidence and possibly more deaths while the window of opportunity remains open for lawyers to advertise their services to women with problems? Shameful!

I accept that one of the main birth control ‘benefits’ of using the contraceptive patch is the convenience of not having to remember to take a pill each day but if you still believe that this advantage outweighs the potentially high risk to your health, consider changing from this type of contraceptive to an IUD like Mirena or Paragard or at the very least, discuss some alternative birth control methods with your doctor.

6 months phase out of the contraceptive patch-why ?

Why is a phase out period for the contraceptive patch needed at all? Because the powers that be are worried that we women may not immediately replace the patch with another form of birth control- Hello!-we panic if we miss one pill or throw up! OK, so you need time to have a chat with your health care provider about another type of contraceptive but is a short spell of ‘playing safe’ with condoms too big an ask for an empowered, responsible, modern young woman who successfully manages her ‘contraception career’? (that’s why you visit this site yes?) Why refill a prescription, even for six months, when that last round of patches could leave you with one of the biggest regrets of your life?

The patch releases high doses of estrogen into a women’s body creating an unacceptable risk to her health so suggesting that in 6 months time it is pulled off the shelves does little to reduce the problem today. Six months gives time for more lawsuits to arise and with them the inevitable toll on unfortunate women.

“Women deserve a level of risk at least comparable to or less than the pill for their hormonal contraceptive. The absence of any evidence of a unique benefit combined with the considerable safety problems of high-dose, variable estrogen exposure in Ortho-Evra tips the balance of risks and benefits against its availability as a contraceptive.” ……Dr. Sidney Wolfe, director of the Health Research Group at Public Citizen.

Come on girls, this is no time for apathy, if you still have a contraceptive patch in the pack I strongly urge you to leave it there. A lower dose of estrogen in a contraceptive pill may not seem attractive to you right now but for tonight’s protection go grab some trendy condoms then head off to see the doc!

There’s detailed information about different types of contraceptive pills on this site and I’ve found the cheapest on line suppliers for the brand names listed on the RHS of this page, including Alesse, Desogen, Levlen, Mircette, Ovral, Ortho Tricyclen and Yaz/Yasmin.

You may have noticed that I have not addressed the disturbing issues surrounding the hormonal patch as an acceptable contraceptive. I do not wish to alarm -just to to alert you to investigate this contraceptive thoroughly and certainly discuss its suitability with your doctor if you are wishing to use it.  I am not advocating its use, just pointing you in the direction of the latest information and keeping you up to date with the latest warning.

The Boston Collaborative Drug Surveillance Program (at the request of Johnson and Johnson, manufacturers of the Birth Control Patch) conducted a study of women between between the ages of 15 and 44 who use the patch. The results corroborated an earlier study that there was a greater risk of VTE (Venous Thromboembolism) indicated for women in this age bracket.

The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) have issued a strong warning that women who use the ‘patch’ may face increased risk of developing blood clots in their legs or lungs, a condition called Venous Thromboembolism (VTE). The labels inside the packages have been changed to reflect this risk. The patch contains much higher doses of estrogen than the contraceptive pill does.

Be Informed and ask questions- there are reports that some women have been using the patch unaware of the possible complications so, given that in 2005 the FDA revealed that the patch sold in the US exposed women to 60% more estrogen than the oral contraceptive ‘pill’, be cautious. The Canadian ‘patch’ has lower levels of estrogen than the one sold in the US but even so, unless you see a HUGE advantage to using this form of birth control, maybe you should consider other options— just in case?

This site has the full report and also shows you stats on contraceptive buys from pharmacies.

Risks- Yes, there are risks with taking oral contraceptives too but now that the estrogen levels are much lower in today’s pills ( 30-20 mg as opposed to 150mg in the 60’s and 70’s) the side effects have been reduced.

The ’scary’ words associated with the “Patch”, namely, blood clots, stroke and heart attack have been loud enough to warrant warnings from Government health officials in Canada and the USA. The adhesive ‘patch’ works by delivering hormones to a woman’s body through her skin- it is only available through prescriptions. We are being reassured that in healthy women the risk is not high but if you add the risks of smoking and obesity….? Mmm..is it worth the extra risk?