Oral Contraceptives

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Oral contraceptives, otherwise known as birth control pills, are also approved to treat acne. They work by regulating male hormones in the female...

Oral contraceptives, otherwise known as birth control pills, are also approved to treat acne. They work by regulating male hormones in the female body. Less male hormones normally lead to less acne.

Oral contraceptives contain an estrogen component (ethinyl estradiol) that is combined with progestin hormones, such as drospirenone (Yasmin® or Yaz®), norgestimate (Ortho Tri-Cyclen®) or norethindrone (Estrostep®).

Oral contraceptives are taken once a day with a meal. Make sure to take the pill at the same time every day.

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monique

July 2, 2008

Pros:

starting to clear my skin , bigger bobs

ive been using for a month and havent gotten my period. Im freaking out! i also feel very uncomfortable in my skin the dark blue week, which isnt really like me.

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Anonymous

May 11, 2008

Pros:

Cleared up my acne, no pregnancy, minimal side effects, lighter periods

Cons:

None!

I had really bad acne before going on this, after 6 months my skin is back to normal again. You have to give it a few months to regulate your hormones to notice a change in your skin. Great product!

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Robin

March 22, 2008

Pros:

NO CRAMPS!!, lighter periods, prevents pregnancy, no significant weight gain

Cons:

nausea and vomiting the first few days

I was a bit discouraged in the beginning because it was making me throw up, but I kept taking my pills like I was supposed to and after a few days I felt a lot better. at the end of my pack when I got my period I was AMAZED! first of all, we hadn't been using condoms so I thought it was magical that birth control actually works so well to prevent pregnancy. and in addition to the lack of babies, I had a complete lack of cramps which was fantastic to me because I used to get the most horrible cramps in the world. I will continue taking the pills and I hope to see an improvement on my acne in the next couple months as well. :)

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March 6, 2008

Pros:

No period pimples, bigger boobs, no pregnancy

Cons:

After two years of taking it still experiences break through bleeding, nausea, weight gain

The first year on the pill was amazing I saw results in everything! But, all of a sudden, the second year on it towards teh end of the second year I was getting erally moody, crying a lot, getting more bloated than usual, getting mroe nauseous than usual. A little odd after two years? Your body is supposed to regulate but I guess mine did the opposite. They just switched me to the Lo version and I am pretty skeptical.

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Alexis

February 11, 2008

Pros:

Great skin!

Cons:

I'm knocked up!!!!!!!!!

I was twenty hours late on a pill in week one. I called the pharmacist and she said there was no need to use condoms. I just took the missed pill with my scheduled pill and went on my merry way. At the end of the month, my period never came and now I'M KNOCKED UP! I;m happily married so its not a huge deal but let me add...I was on ortho-novum for 5 years (missed pills all the time) and never got pregnant. I switched to ortho tri cyclen for the skin benifits but wish I would have kept the pimples!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Danielle

January 3, 2008

Pros:

jumped a cup size in my boobs, shorter periods, clearer skin, no pregnancy!!

Cons:

EMOTIONAL breakdowns that come out of no where, bloating, upset stomach if i do not eat, change in appetitite (increased)

I have been on this pill before when i was 15 (i am now 21) and overall i think its a good pill, but the emotional breakdowns and bloating are sometimes too much to handle. The bloating seems to never go away!! anyone else experianced this? Plus, my periods have been very short compared to normal and VERY light. Not sure if this is completely normal with being on the pill.

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jenny

October 21, 2007

Pros:

regulated menstral cycle, pregnancy prevention

Cons:

not helping the acne as i had expected

i have been on orthotricyclen for three or four monthes now, i thought it would clear up my acne because the doctor at planned parenthood told me so but it hasn't helped much. i still have regular breakouts im 19 and have had a problem with acne since my sophmore year of highschool.

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August 23, 2007

Pros:

none

Cons:

YEAST INFECTIONS.

never had a yeast infection in my life and i've had 3 since starting this pill last summer. if you've ever had a yeast infection before, then you know that it is such a horrible, painful, frustrating experience.

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Anonymous

August 7, 2007

Pros:

kept me from getting pregnant and make a few pimples go away.

Cons:

didnt completely clear my skin, it make me completely moody, felt sick after taking it, makes your period really thick and goopy.

its nice for preventing pregnancy but it will give you terrible mood swings and you'll be a in a bad mood most of the time, i stopped taking it 3 days ago and i feel like my normal happy self again. recommend it for pregnancy prevention but not for acne

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Kimberly

October 24, 2006

Pros:

I am 22 and have moderate acne. I have been using pro-active for about a yr, it has been minimimally effective. I started taking ortho to prevent pregnancy, but by the beginning of the second month I noticed all my acne was completely gone.

Cons:

My acne was a little worse the first couple weeks on birth control and I don't know if it was b/c of the birth control or not. Also, I noticed my eyes have been a lot more dry, which has not been great since I wear contacts.

Try it. It worked perfect for me and I wasn't even taking it for that reason at all. Take it for two months and see if it doesn't work for you too. Hopefully it will work, but if not you should consider acutane. My sister had really severe acne about 5 years ago and when nothing else worked she took acutane. It cleared her skin up completely. I never see her with acne now and it has been five years, but she did say it gets really bad before it starts to clear up, so keep that in mind and don't give up immediately or get too depressed when it gets worse to start off.

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