Oral contraceptive - Mechanism of action

Oral contraceptives are chemicals taken by mouth to inhibit normal fertility. All act on the hormonal system. Female oral contraceptives have been on the market since the early 1960s, and enjoy great popularity. They are used by millions of women around the world, though the acceptance varies by region: approximately one-third of sexually active women in the United Kingdom, but much less in countries such as Japan. Male oral contraceptives remain a subject of research and development, and are not widely available to the public. Including:

• Oral contraceptive - Principles
• Oral contraceptive - Use
• Oral contraceptive - Mechanism of action
• Oral contraceptive - Effectiveness
• Oral contraceptive - Packaging
• Oral contraceptive - Drug interactions
• Oral contraceptive - Side-effects
• Oral contraceptive - Formulations
• Oral contraceptive - Effects on sexuality
• Oral contraceptive - Cautions and contraindications
• Oral contraceptive - Benefits
• Oral contraceptive - History
• Oral contraceptive - Invention
• Oral contraceptive - France
• Oral contraceptive - Japan

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Several different types of 'the Pill' exist. Generally, they all have different synthetic estrogens and progestins, chemical analogues of the natural hormones, estradiol (an estrogen) and progesterone (a progestagen). Most common brands use 20 to 40 micrograms of ethinyl estradiol as the estrogen component and either a fixed or varying (the bi- and triphasic pills) amount of either levonorgestrel or norethindrone as the progestagen component. Please see Progesterone only pills which, lacking any estrogen, have generall ...

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Oral contraceptive, Oral contraceptive - Principles, Oral contraceptive - Use, Oral contraceptive - Mechanism of action, Oral contraceptive - Effectiveness, Oral contraceptive - Packaging, Oral contraceptive - Drug interactions, Oral contraceptive - Side-effects, Oral contraceptive - Formulations, Oral contraceptive - Effects on sexuality, Oral contraceptive - Cautions and contraindications, Oral contraceptive - Benefits, Oral contraceptive - History, Oral contraceptive - Invention, Oral contraceptive - France, Oral contraceptive - Japan

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Oral contraceptive - Invention. In the late 1940s, Russell Marker, a professor of botany at the Pennsylvania State University, became interested in hormones that were naturally found in plants. He searched the Southwest examining the cactus but the quantity of hormones in these plants was very low. He read an obscure article by a Japanese scientist who described a yam that could be found in Mexico that had a high content of hormones. He traveled to Mexico and obtained permission to harvest several of the plants. He claims one was stolen overnight but went f ...

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Oral contraceptive, Oral contraceptive - Principles, Oral contraceptive - Use, Oral contraceptive - Mechanism of action, Oral contraceptive - Effectiveness, Oral contraceptive - Packaging, Oral contraceptive - Drug interactions, Oral contraceptive - Side-effects, Oral contraceptive - Formulations, Oral contraceptive - Effects on sexuality, Oral contraceptive - Cautions and contraindications, Oral contraceptive - Benefits, Oral contraceptive - History, Oral contraceptive - Invention, Oral contraceptive - France, Oral contraceptive - Japan

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When starting to take the Pill some women report slight weight gain, although most studies show that the incidences of this is about 50% and as many women experience slight weight loss. Some women also notice changes in the intensity of sexual desire, vaginal discharge and menstrual flow. Some other common side effects are: breakthrough bleeding, nausea, headaches, depression, vaginitis, urinary tract infection, changes in the breasts, changes in blood pressure, skin problems, skin improvements, and gum inflammation. The insert included with each pill packet usually ha ...

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Oral contraceptive, Oral contraceptive - Principles, Oral contraceptive - Use, Oral contraceptive - Mechanism of action, Oral contraceptive - Effectiveness, Oral contraceptive - Packaging, Oral contraceptive - Drug interactions, Oral contraceptive - Side-effects, Oral contraceptive - Formulations, Oral contraceptive - Effects on sexuality, Oral contraceptive - Cautions and contraindications, Oral contraceptive - Benefits, Oral contraceptive - History, Oral contraceptive - Invention, Oral contraceptive - France, Oral contraceptive - Japan

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Oral contraceptives may influence coagulation, subtlely increasing the risk of deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism, stroke and myocardial infarction (heart attack). However, estrogen contraceptives are usually only contraindicated in women with pre-existing cardiovascular disease, in women who have a familial tendency to form blood clots (such as familial factor V Leiden), women with severe obesity and/or hyperc ...

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Oral contraceptive, Oral contraceptive - Principles, Oral contraceptive - Use, Oral contraceptive - Mechanism of action, Oral contraceptive - Effectiveness, Oral contraceptive - Packaging, Oral contraceptive - Drug interactions, Oral contraceptive - Side-effects, Oral contraceptive - Formulations, Oral contraceptive - Effects on sexuality, Oral contraceptive - Cautions and contraindications, Oral contraceptive - Benefits, Oral contraceptive - History, Oral contraceptive - Invention, Oral contraceptive - France, Oral contraceptive - Japan

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When starting to take the Pill some women report slight weight gain, although this depends entirely on the individual and some people experience no weight gain at all while people who are already obese or overweight may continue to gain weight. Some women also notice changes in the intensity of sexual desire, vaginal discharge and menstrual flow. Some other common side effects are: breakthrough bleeding, nausea, headaches, depression, vaginitis, urinary tract infection, changes in the breasts, changes in blood pressure, skin problems, ...

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Oral contraceptive, Oral contraceptive - Principles, Oral contraceptive - Use, Oral contraceptive - Mechanism of action, Oral contraceptive - Effectiveness, Oral contraceptive - Packaging, Oral contraceptive - Drug interactions, Oral contraceptive - Side-effects, Oral contraceptive - Formulations, Oral contraceptive - Effects on sexuality, Oral contraceptive - Cautions and contraindications, Oral contraceptive - Benefits, Oral contraceptive - History, Oral contraceptive - Invention, Oral contraceptive - France, Oral contraceptive - Japan

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The Pearl Index[2] is often used to compare the effectiveness of various methods of contraception. It is expressed as the "number of pregnancies in 100 normally fertile women over the period of one year". Each method of birth control has two Pearl index numbers: method effectiveness: is the Pearl index number for use under perfect conditions. The method effectiveness Pearl index for the Pill has been measured as low as 0.3 and ...

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Oral contraceptive, Oral contraceptive - Principles, Oral contraceptive - Use, Oral contraceptive - Mechanism of action, Oral contraceptive - Effectiveness, Oral contraceptive - Packaging, Oral contraceptive - Drug interactions, Oral contraceptive - Side-effects, Oral contraceptive - Formulations, Oral contraceptive - Effects on sexuality, Oral contraceptive - Cautions and contraindications, Oral contraceptive - Benefits, Oral contraceptive - History, Oral contraceptive - Invention, Oral contraceptive - France, Oral contraceptive - Japan

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The Pill usually comes in two different packet sizes, and each packet usually has days marked off for a cycle lasting of 28 days. For the 21-pill packet, a woman takes a pill each day for 21 days, and waits for an additional seven days before starting the next packet. For the 28-pill packet, the woman similarly takes a pill each day. However, instead of only taking pills for 21 days of the month, she also takes the remaining seven placebo or sugar pills included in the packet, and once she finishes the last placebo pill, she can immedia ...

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Oral contraceptive, Oral contraceptive - Principles, Oral contraceptive - Use, Oral contraceptive - Mechanism of action, Oral contraceptive - Effectiveness, Oral contraceptive - Packaging, Oral contraceptive - Drug interactions, Oral contraceptive - Side-effects, Oral contraceptive - Formulations, Oral contraceptive - Effects on sexuality, Oral contraceptive - Cautions and contraindications, Oral contraceptive - Benefits, Oral contraceptive - History, Oral contraceptive - Invention, Oral contraceptive - France, Oral contraceptive - Japan

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Female oral contraceptives, colloquially known as the Pill, are the most common form of pharmaceutical contraception. They are used to prevent pregnancy. The pill is also used to control symptoms of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and endometriosis. Many doctors prescribe the Pill to women who complain of dysfunctional uterine bleeding. Female oral contraceptives consist of a pill that women take daily and that contains doses of synthetic hormones (always a progestin and most often also an estrogen). In some types of pill the ...

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Oral contraceptive, Oral contraceptive - Principles, Oral contraceptive - Use, Oral contraceptive - Mechanism of action, Oral contraceptive - Effectiveness, Oral contraceptive - Packaging, Oral contraceptive - Drug interactions, Oral contraceptive - Side-effects, Oral contraceptive - Formulations, Oral contraceptive - Effects on sexuality, Oral contraceptive - Cautions and contraindications, Oral contraceptive - Benefits, Oral contraceptive - History, Oral contraceptive - Invention, Oral contraceptive - France, Oral contraceptive - Japan

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The effect of the Pill on a woman’s sexuality are difficult to judge; depending on the individual and the particular formula, the Pill may enhance or disrupt a woman’s (or couple’s) sex life. Neither the woman who uses the Pill nor her partner need take any special action before or during intercourse, which makes birth control “invisible” and sex spontaneous and more natural. When combined with the Pill’s high degree of effectiveness, this may enable the couple, and especially the woman, to relax more easily during sex. Masters and Johnson, among others, reported more than one woman who experienced her first ...

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Oral contraceptive, Oral contraceptive - Principles, Oral contraceptive - Use, Oral contraceptive - Mechanism of action, Oral contraceptive - Effectiveness, Oral contraceptive - Packaging, Oral contraceptive - Drug interactions, Oral contraceptive - Side-effects, Oral contraceptive - Formulations, Oral contraceptive - Effects on sexuality, Oral contraceptive - Cautions and contraindications, Oral contraceptive - Benefits, Oral contraceptive - History, Oral contraceptive - Invention, Oral contraceptive - France, Oral contraceptive - Japan

Read more here: » Oral contraceptive: Encyclopedia II - Oral contraceptive - Effects on sexuality