Acne.org Products
Hormonal Therapy
Efficacy
63%
Based on All Available Studies
Strength of Evidence
Note: Improvement significantly increases after 24 weeks.
Hormonal Therapy
Acne.org’s Real World Take
Any brand of oral contraceptive appears to clear the skin about the same amount, regardless of whether it is officially approved for acne treatment. Some people report complete clearing of acne symptoms and others see partial relief. However, artificially controlling your hormones is a serious decision, so it’s best to proceed with caution.
Hormonal Therapy
How to Get It
Have a dermatologist? Make an appointment to get this medication. Don't have a dermatologist? See The American Academy of Dermatology Physician Database to find one.
Used Oral Contraceptives? Rate It:
Choose from 1 to 5 stars
May 3, 2010
Cons:
I was on it for 5 years and the effectiveness of the prescription has been slowly wearing off over the past 6 months, my solution was to switch medications.
it was great for several years until my body adapted to it. i would say its worth your time to try it out!
December 2, 2009
Product used: Yasmin (Oral Contraceptive)
Pros:
clear skin, no excess body/facial hair, thicker hair on my head, stabilized mood
Cons:
when i went off all the pros are reversed.
i had acne everywhere, then went on yasmin and my skin cleared up to the point that i rarely ever even had the slightest imperfection on my face and i was only using cetaphil cleanser each night and water in the morning. When i went off it my hair started falling out in clumps (thank god i have a very very full head of hair), it did start growing back after a month or so... the worst part about going off the pill is that my skin has completely broken out and looks almost as bad as it did pre-yasmin. :(
March 1, 2016
Product used: LoEstrin (Oral Contraceptive)
ZERO Acne, No Mood Swings, Bigger Boobs
I honestly only started taking this birth-control to get rid of acne that I had my whole entire life. I wish I had listened to my doctor and friends sooner. I suffer from acne since high school. NOTHING worked... I went to the best dermatologist in Miami, the best products for use, the best make up etc. I tried Ortho Tri-cyclen Lo and it made me CRAZY. I honestly felt possessed. However, birth control is a hit or miss. You need to try what works best for you as my friends have used Ortho Tri-cyclen and were extremely happy. Anyways, LoEstrin Lo has seriously completely gotten rid of all my acne. I do not break out AT ALL. I do not have Moodswings, and not that I needed, but it does make my breast size fuller also. Getting rid of acne was the only reason I tried birth control, so I am scared to stop taking it for when I try to have more children. I am now 33 years old and have been on this birth-control for three years and I love it!
October 29, 2012
Product used: Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo (Oral Contraceptive)
Pros:
Not a total cure, but definitely helps to clear hormonal acne and control oil.
Cons:
Horrible breakouts, hair loss when stopped.
I feel stuck on this pill. I've taken accutane, which worked temporarily but my acne gradually creeped back. Desogen did nothing to help my skin, so I switched to Ortho Lo. This pill helped to clear my skin - I still got the occasional zit, but I was virtually clear about 5 months in. I decided to go off the Pill to give my body a break. BIG mistake... acne came back horribly, hair was falling out in clumps. Went back on the pill, and now 3.5 months in my skin is better but not nearly as good as it was before I went off.
June 4, 2012
Pros:
No acne
No initial break out (at least for me)
No spotting
Breasts feel fuller
Cons:
Increase in appetite
I LOVE THIS BIRTH CONTROL! I'm 21 years old and never had acne until about a year ago. It got so bad that I didn't want anyone to see me. I got big, red, cystic like acne all over my cheeks and jaw line. I tried so many different birth control pills, which actually isn't good for your body, and nothing worked. The first week after I started Ortho Try-Cyclen my face was so much clearer. I have noticed an increase in my appetite, so far that seems to be the only flaw to it. My insurance doesn't cover most name brand meds so I do have to pay $35.00 every month, but its so worth it. If you have severe acne like I HAD then I recommend you try it because its AWESOME! :)
December 24, 2011
Product used: YAZ (Oral Contraceptive)
Pros:
Lighter shorter periods
No period pain
No weight gain
No PMS or PMDD symptoms anymore
Cons:
None
This contraceptive was perfect for me, it cleared my slight skin issues and stopped me being crazy once a month. Definitely worth a try if you have PMDD or exceptionally heavy and painful periods. I hope it works for you too.
July 4, 2011
Product used: Yasmin (Oral Contraceptive)
Pros:
-Haven't gained any weight so far
Cons:
-Horrible break out all over cheeks and jawline
-Extremely tired (HAVE to nap about 3 hours after taking the pill)
This is my first month taking Yasmin. I'm on my third week. I was on Reclipsin for a year, but started experiencing horrible nausea so decided to switch. I was then on TriSprintec for a year, and started experiencing major hair loss, so I decided to switch again. I went on Yasmin because it is a name-brand birth control that is supposed to help with acne. Right now I guess I'm experiencing the initial break out but I hope it doesn't last much longer. I'm very, very, very, fair skinned so any kind of acne lesion leaves a red suface scar on my face for weeks (So right now without makeup I have red marks all over my skin). I've never broken out so heavily on my cheeks before in my entire life. I'm going to give Yasmin a minimum of 3 months, so I'll try to update with my progress (hopefully progress) soon. Also, I used [link removed] to order my Yasmin. I couldn't afford it otherwise. It comes out to 18.67 a pack, and instead of 75 that's a good amount of savings. You do have to fax an ID and prescription, and the shipping takes a long time (like a week and a half) so you would need to order it accordingly. It looks exactly like my roommates, so it's legit, too. I'm giving it a rating of '2' for right now because I only recently started it.
July 4, 2011
Product used: Yasmin (Oral Contraceptive)
Pros:
Clear skin
Cons:
Headaches, made me depressed, and really dries the skin especially the lips.
I have had acne for about 12 years now. My acne has ranged from moderate to severe flare-ups throughout. Having tried so many types of topical treatments (including bp), skin peels and antibiotics with temporary successes here and there, i finally decided to try the pill. i was put on diannette, which cleared my skin up completely but the dr said i couldnt take it for more than the 1.5 yrs i had been using it. so he switched me to yasmin. it maintained my clear skin. however instantly i noticed that my skin became a lot drier. my lips began to take on this horrible grainy texture. i also lost a lot of weight but i think that was mostly because the pill wouldnt allow my body to retain water. i also suffered a huge amount of hair loss (about two-thirds) and felt depressed a lot of the time. after about 9 months into it, i made the decision to STOP cold turkey as i no longer wanted to pump my body full of unnatural chemicals. it's now almost been 3 months. post-pill side effects so far have been really oily skin and hair! if i touched my face with my hands, i seriously had enough oil on them to give myself a good moisturising! also my hair was dripping with oil by the end of the day - pre-pill my hair could go 2 days without washing!! i also started to get painful red bumps around my mouth/chin area and a lot of white heads - the dreaded post-pill break out!! i've been quite lucky with my periods returning, although others havent been so lucky. my moods are back to normal and i am so relaxed lol. so anyway now im taking 75mg of zinc gluconate and 3000mg of EPO every day - which seems to be working quite well (but will save that for another post)! Natural is the best way forward. Clear skin is not worth the damage that this pill will cause to your body!!
April 14, 2011
Product used: Yasmin (Oral Contraceptive)
Pros:
clear skin, lighter periods, bigger boobs,
Cons:
none
Went on this pill because of really bad acne, after 2 months my skin had already begun to clear up and now after 4 months is spot free.
Although it worked for me, doesn't work for everyone like every other pill, it worked for my sister, but not for my friend.
December 14, 2010
Pros:
not pregnant so far..that i know of..
regulated period
light period
Cons:
cramps before during and after period
mood swings
hunger
weight gain
decreased sex drive
nausea/vomitting
migraines
sore boobs
have a few pimples now
always tired.
ive never had pimples so this was def. NOT the reason to get b.c. got it so i wouldnt get pregnant again since my husband and i dont want more kids...its definetaly helping with that since i never want to have sex anymore!! if i didnt have to be on birthcontrol i would be! im constantly cramping, tired, crabby..
Pros:
cleared up acne, regulated periods, reduced pms symptoms...