Does smoking affect the contraceptive pill?
Providers often get asked if light smoking and birth control have the same effect. Naturally, the heavier you smoke, the more you put yourself at risk. However, any nicotine combined with birth control can increase stress on your blood vessels. Therefore, avoid both light smoking and heavy smoking altogether.
Is it bad to be on the pill for years?
Answer From Yvonne Butler Tobah, M.D. As long as you are generally healthy, you can safely take birth control pills for however long you need birth control or until you reach menopause. This applies to both combination estrogen-progestin and progestin-only birth control pills.
Does the pill damage your body?
Even though birth control pills are very safe, using the combination pill can slightly increase your risk of health problems. Complications are rare, but they can be serious. These include heart attack, stroke, blood clots, and liver tumors. In very rare cases, they can lead to death.
How does smoking affect oral contraceptives?
To reduce the risk of serious side effects, do not smoke cigarettes while you are taking oral contraceptives. Cigarette smoking increases the risk of serious cardiovascular side effects from oral contraceptive use.
Does alcohol affect birth control?
Alcohol doesn’t have a direct effect on how your birth control works. However, the effects of alcohol can increase your risk of birth control failure. First, if you’re drinking heavily or become intoxicated, the odds that you’ll forget to take your medicine on time increase.
Does alcohol cancel out the pill?
Alcohol does not reduce the effectiveness of birth control pills. However, the pills amplify the effects of alcohol. This can impair judgment and lead to more risky behavior. If a person forgets to take the pill or vomits within 2 hours of taking it, they may have an increased likelihood of pregnancy.
Does coffee make birth control less effective?
Birth control pills (Contraceptive drugs)Interaction Rating: Moderate Be cautious with this combination. Talk with your health provider. The body breaks down the caffeine in coffee to get rid of it. Birth control pills can decrease how quickly the body breaks down caffeine.
Can I fall pregnant while on the pill?
Yes. Although birth control pills have a high success rate, they can fail and you can get pregnant while on the pill. Certain factors increase your risk of getting pregnant, even if you’re on birth control. Keep these factors in mind if you’re sexually active and want to prevent an unplanned pregnancy.
Can you get pregnant if you take the pill perfectly?
Birth control pills are considered effective, but not foolproof. They’re about 99% effective when you take them correctly. But that’s if you take them perfectly, meaning at the same time each and every day. If you don’t, your odds of becoming pregnant go up to 9%.
What makes birth control pills fail?
Human behavior is the most common reason that birth control pills fail (1). The majority of people using the pill forget to take one or more each month (5), while others have challenges filling the prescription monthly (6). Some people might stop taking it because they are concerned about side effects (1).
What if you take 3 birth control pills at once?
If you’ve accidentally taken any extra pills, carry on taking the rest of your packet as normal at the same time you usually take it each day. For example, if you usually take your pill at 8am every day: on Monday, you take your normal pill at 8am, but then take an extra pill by mistake at 8.15am.