The pill and other hormonal contraceptives
By Mayo Clinic staffHormonal contraceptives, a popular method of birth control, offer highly effective, reversible pregnancy prevention. These methods prevent pregnancy by inhibiting ovulation, by altering cervical mucus to decrease sperm mobility and by impairing embryo implantation in the uterus. Besides preventing pregnancy, hormonal contraceptives have other beneficial effects, including regular, shorter and less painful menstrual periods — or for some methods, no periods at all. The first hormonal contraceptive was the combination birth control pill, which appeared on the U.S. market in the early 1960s. Since then, hormonal contraceptive options have expanded to include the following:
- Skin patch
- Vaginal ring
- Minipill
- Injection
- Implant
Choosing among the pill, the patch and the ring
Combined estrogen and progestin hormonal methods — the pill, the patch and the ring — all provide comparable effectiveness, side effects and benefits. So how do you decide which of these three methods to use? The key to making this decision is deciding which method best suits your lifestyle. For example, if you have difficulty remembering to take a pill every day, you might want to use the ring or the patch, which you don't have to think about daily. If your skin is sensitive or easily irritated, you might not want to use the patch. Or if you're uncomfortable inserting a vaginal ring, you may want to consider the other two options instead.
