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Birth Control Pill Ad Crackdown by FDA

birth control pills

Can birth control pills solve your every problem, including headaches? You might think so, judging from some TV commercials.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) now says that a drug company has gone too far, and the agency has ordered Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals to run a $20 million ad campaign correcting claims that their popular birth control pill Yaz can clear up acne, general mood problems, irritability, anxiety, and premenstrual symptoms.

In a Feb. 10 article titled, “A Birth Control Pill that Promised Too Much,” the New York Times said that the FDA’s action was “an unusual crackdown on deceptive consumer drug advertising.” The FDA action was joined by attorneys general in 27 states.

But the $20 million ad campaign that Bayer must run is only “chump change” for the pharmaceutical giant, according to Bruce L. Lambert, a professor of pharmacy administration at the University of Illinois at Chicago, as quoted in the Pharma Marketing Network Forums. For them, he said it was “just the cost of doing business.”

Indeed, drug companies spent $5 billion in direct-to-consumer advertising in 2007, which is more than twice the total FDA budget, according to the popular blog Cab Drollery. Since some of its more popular products are nearing their patent expirations and opening manufacturing to generic competitors, Bayer has piled on the advertising to increase its market share.

“Obviously that $5 billion ad budget was money well-spent for the pharmaceutical companies,” Cab Drollery said, “but hardly beneficial to the people who watched the commercials….”

Advertising for oral contraceptives includes little about various possible side effects such as breast cancer, bloodclot formation, and cardiovascular disease.

Women in Berwyn, Oak Park, Stickney, LaGrange, Cicero, Westchester, and nearby towns can learn more about the true effects of oral contraceptives by contacting WomanCare Services in Berwyn, IL.
WomanCare Services offers help to women facing unintended pregnancies in the near southwest Chicago area. Go to WomanCare Services. Or call 708-795-6000.

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Birth Control Pills: All About Combination Pills

birth control pills


The combination pills, one of the two hormonal contraceptive pills, contain two hormones named Estrogen and Progestin. There are mainly three conceptual combined birth control pills. Here they are:

Monophasic Pills:

A pack of 28 pills contain twenty-one active pills with Estrogen and Progestin while the other seven do not contain any hormones. In 2003, September was the month when the FDA (Food and Drug Administration of USA) has approved a routine of birth control pills for 91 days, which was known as Seasonale. If you follow this routine then you have to take combined hormonal pills up to 84 days (12 weeks) followed by 1 week of non-hormonal contraceptive tablets which are called placebos. If you implement this routine in your life then your menstrual period will come once at each three months.

Multiphasic Pills:

They are also known as Biphasic and Triphasic. These multiphasic birth control pills contain different amounts of Estrogen and Progestin. They are taken at particular period during your pill-taking program. These pills control different levels of hormones, Estrogen and Progestin, during the month. These pills were designed to decrease the side-effects of hormonal birth control pills.

Continuous Taking Pills:

The multiphasic pill Lybrel, approved by FDA in 2007, was the first pills that can be taken continuously; without breaking your cycle of pill packets. You will find it in a twenty-eight day pack. If you are using this pill then you will not have a menstrual period. You may have to pass through some side-effects when you start taking this pill.

Advantages of combined pills:

• Usage of combined pills decreases the chances of endometrial cancer and ovarian cancer.

• Also avoids the pregnancy which does not take place inside the uterus.

• It reduces the bleeding during the menstrual period.

• The usage of combined pills will decrease the amount of rigorous premenstrual symptoms.

• They can be used as a treatment of ACNE and many doctors recommended the combined pill for this purpose.

• The combined-pills improve bone density.

• User’s menstrual cycles will be more normal.

• These pills will decrease your unwanted hair growth, especially on the face.

• These pills are quite reversible and perhaps that’s the pure reason why women love the pills.

Disadvantages of Combined-pills:

• While you are using the pills for the very first time, they may cause vomiting, nausea, headaches, spotting etc.

• The usage of combined pills may cause hypertension and blood clots in rare cases.

• These pills may take a part in creation of gallstones and sometimes in liver tumors too but in quite rare cases.

Side-effects that may put you in trouble:

Nausea, vomiting and headaches are some side effects that happened at minor level and during the first cycle of these pills. But there are also chances of irregular bleeding, weight fluctuation, breast tenderness, and also these pills may increase your breast size.

If you want to get advantages of the combined pills then you have to take it as per the schedule and at the same time. Even your partner should not have any problem in using condoms. You must be enough healthy and young and must not be addicted of smoking. Thus there are some restrictions and regulations which should be maintained while using the combined-pills only then you can get advantage from the pills.



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