Will short-term birth control pills make you fat?

We all know that contraception is crucial for families with children. At the same time, there are many ways of contraception. In order to enjoy a high-quality sex life, many people choose contraceptives. We all know that taking contraceptives will cause weight gain. In fact, there are many kinds of contraceptives, both long-term and short-term, as well as emergency contraceptives. In fact, not every contraceptive will cause weight gain. Let us understand together whether short-term contraceptives will make you fat?

Will short-term contraceptives make you fat?

Fear of gaining weight is one of the most common reasons why many women are reluctant to take short-acting contraceptives or stop taking them. The journal Contraception once published a review article on short-acting oral contraceptives. The author stated that the claim that taking birth control pills will make you fat can be called false propaganda.

There has never been conclusive evidence that oral contraceptives cause people to gain weight. Another recent review also found no evidence that women taking progesterone pills gained weight, and a similar study in 2008 also found no link between progesterone and estrogen pills and weight gain.

If the pill doesn't make you fat, why does it have this reputation?

The most important factor may be that drug packaging itself is misleading. Most oral contraceptives list "weight gain" among the common side effects. If pharmaceutical companies tell us that taking a medicine will make us fat, why shouldn’t we believe it? But warnings on medicine bottles aren’t always trustworthy. Participants in clinical trials are asked if they noticed any symptoms while taking the medicine, and the most reported symptoms are likely to be printed, even if there’s no evidence that the drug is the cause of the problem.

The only reliable way to determine this question may be to do a controlled trial, randomly selecting some women to take oral contraceptives and others to take a placebo. There have been three such studies, involving more than 1,200 people. These studies were designed to examine whether the drugs could eliminate acne or relieve menstrual cramps or abdominal pain. But the researchers also collected data on headaches, nausea, breast tenderness, vomiting and weight gain. The study found no difference in these symptoms between women taking the oral contraceptive pill and those taking a placebo.

In the United States, about half of all pregnancies are unplanned, and oral contraceptives may not be right for every woman, and they do have some risks, such as blood clots. Still, it's better than an unexpected pregnancy. When taken correctly, short-acting contraceptive pills have a 99% chance of preventing pregnancy. Once you are pregnant, you may gain more than ten kilograms. In this sense, pregnancy may be the thing that can cause women to gain weight the most.

We all know that high-quality sex life can enhance the relationship between couples. When we choose contraceptive methods, we should try to choose methods that are less harmful to our bodies. Many women are often afraid that long-term use of contraceptives will cause weight gain. In fact, short-term contraceptives are a good choice.