Nausea and Birth Control Pill Symptoms: What Causes it?
The reason why some women experience nausea after taking birth control pills is because they are not using enough effective amount of pills. When a woman takes too much birth control pill she may feel sick or vomit. Some women have experienced nausea when taking hormonal contraceptives like the combination of Depo Provera and Norplant (Norplant). However, most often the symptoms of nausea from birth control pills are caused by improper use.
If a woman is taking too many pills at one time, she may experience nausea. She may need to take less than usual amount of pills. If a woman is taking too little birth control pills, she might suffer from nausea. The best way to prevent the symptoms of nausea from birth control pills is to make sure that you are properly using your birth control pill and correctly following its instructions.
What Are Birth Control Pills Used For?
Birth control pills are used to prevent pregnancy. They are also used to treat certain medical conditions such as endometriosis, acne, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), and PMS. Women usually start taking birth control pills during their teens and continue them throughout their lives. A typical cycle lasts 28 days. During each menstrual period, a woman’s body releases hormones into her system which cause changes in her reproductive organs. The hormones also cause the release of an egg from the woman’s ovary. A woman is most likely to get pregnant if she has sexual contact during this time. This is called ovulation. Hormonal changes prevent pregnancy by stopping ovulation and changing a woman’s vaginal lining so that it is less suitable for an embryo to implant itself.
A woman uses birth control pills to stop her body from releasing an egg each month. Without ovulation, a woman cannot get pregnant.
How Does a Woman Take the Pills?
A woman typically takes one pill every day at about the same time. It is best to take birth control pills with food in your stomach, but this is not essential. If you forget to take a pill, consume twice the amount of pills that you missed. Never try to “catch up” by taking double or triple the amount of pills.
What Happens When You Take the Pills?
The hormones in birth control pills work by changing a woman’s hormone levels. The hormones prevent an egg from being released from the ovaries each month. This keeps a woman from getting pregnant because there is no egg for a man’s seed to fertilize. The pill also changes the lining of a woman’s uterus. It makes it harder for a fertilized egg to implant there.
What Are the Different Types of Birth Control Pills?
There are two main types of birth control pills: combination pills and minipills. There are combination pills that contain both estrogen and progestin, combination pills that contain only progestin, estrogen-progestin pills, and progestin-only pills. The main difference between these types of pills is the amount of hormones they contain.
Some doctors believe that the estrogen-progestin combination is better at preventing pregnancy than progestin-only pills because estrogen helps prevent bone loss and protects against heart disease. On the other hand, progestin-only pills sometimes reduce menstruation cramps.
The minipill only contains progestin. It is slightly less effective than the combination pill. It sometimes causes a reduction in male libido.
How Effective Are They?
The effectiveness of birth control pills depends on how well they are used. Typical failure rates are less than 1% per year when they are used perfectly. Typical failure rates are 5% per year when they are used incorrectly. In other words, they are about 99% effective when used perfectly and about 95% effective when used incorrectly.
What Are the Benefits of Using Birth Control Pills?
The benefits of birth control pills include: they are reversible (you can get pregnant after you stop taking them), they may lighten your periods, and they prevent several types of cancer.
What Are the Disadvantages of Using Birth Control Pills?
The main disadvantage of birth control pills is that they do not protect against sexually transmitted diseases. Condoms must be used in addition to the pill if you are at high risk of getting a sexually transmitted disease.
Another disadvantage is that a woman must take the pill every day at about the same time. If you are late taking the pill, it may not be as effective at preventing pregnancy.
A third disadvantage is that birth control pills may cause side effects such as nausea, headaches, and mood swings. A woman should consult her doctor about these potential side effects and see if there is a different brand of pills that may suit her better.
How Do You Use Birth Control Pills?
Birth control pills must be used consistently. You must take one pill every day at about the same time. The best way to do this is to set your alarm or add the pill-taking event to your daily planner.
You should also remember that the effectiveness of the pill is reduced if you consume alcohol or certain medicines (such as antibiotics) while taking it.
Sources & references used in this article:
Society for Ambulatory Anesthesia guidelines for the management of postoperative nausea and vomiting by TJ Gan, TA Meyer, CC Apfel, F Chung… – Anesthesia & …, 2007 – journals.lww.com
Difference in risk factors for postoperative nausea and vomiting by M Stadler, F Bardiau, L Seidel… – … : The Journal of …, 2003 – anesthesiology.pubs.asahq.org
Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting—incidence and impact on patient quality of life at community oncology settings by L Cohen, CA De Moor, P Eisenberg, EE Ming… – Supportive care in …, 2007 – Springer
Postoperative nausea and vomiting in paediatric patients. by JB Rose, MF Watcha – British journal of anaesthesia, 1999 – academic.oup.com
Postoperative nausea and vomiting—can it be eliminated? by TJ Gan – Jama, 2002 – jamanetwork.com
Consensus guidelines for managing postoperative nausea and vomiting by TJ Gan, T Meyer, CC Apfel, F Chung… – Anesthesia & …, 2003 – journals.lww.com
