tukeetukee

OOH!! WAIT!!! i have a book on this.. it tells which is best for what situation (aka weight gain, moodiness, PCOS, hyperandrogenism, etc).


The author, a doctor, says by all means, AVOID DEPO PROVERA as it causes SO many side effects that the pill doesn't cause.

His list of "the best pills" is:
Yasmin- its progesterone is similar to spironolactone, so it's good for hyperandrogenism, spotting is infrequent, it has a tendancy to soothe pms symptoms

Ortho tri-cyclen and ortho cyclen- its nonandrogenic, cycle control is good. He says he likes ortho tri-cyclen Lo, but not for people taking it for therapeutic reasons such as acne or PCOS because of the lack of estrogen.

Desogen- nonandrogenic and a good overall pill.. the differences between desogen and cyclen and tri-cyclen are small.

Mircette- has active estrogen for 26 out of 28 days, instead of only 21. However, the progesterone is only in 21 pills, so you only have 2 days of pills that have NOTHING in them.. they still allow you to have a pill period because of the lack of estrogen in the last 7 pills, but reduce hormone fluctuations and migraines. Bleeding problems are low on this pill.


His list of "middle pills" is:

Ovcon 35- For women with mood problems on other pills, this may be the only pill tolerable. He says to maybe try yaz first, as it is just a bit better for mood swings.

Ortho-novum 1/35, ortho 7-7-7--- Have served many women well in the past, but have no real advantages.

Nordette- It is among the most androgenic of the low dose BCP's, so BAD FOR WOMEN WITH PCOS, but good for other women with bleeding problems on all the other pills.

Diane-35 ---The progestin in this is a testosterone blocker (It's Androcur). This isn't available in the US but many women get it from canada. The risk of blood clots may be slightly higher than with other BCP's.


His list of the "worst pills" is:
(He notes that these work fine for women who are just seeking contraception, but for women like us who are "hormonally vulnerable" there are definately better options)

Loestrin 1/20--spotting is frequent on this pill, and the lower estrogen level has no real safety advantages.

Alesse-has an androgenic progestin in it. Spotting is common.


the best pills for specific conditions:

Contraception: they all work.

weight gain: yasmin and ortho tri-cyclen.

Mood swings: Yasmin, Mircette, Ovcon 35.

Spotting on the pill: Nordette.

PCOS: Any of the nonandrogenic pills, such as yasmin, ortho-cyclen, desogen.

Migraine-mircette.

Breast tenderness: Mircette, yasmin.

Age 40 or older: mircette, yaz, yasmin, orthocyclen, desogen.



This is from the book "It's Your Hormones" by Geoffrey Redmons, MD.

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