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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July 13, 2010

Pros:

-Enlarged breasts
-Lighter period
-Hair growth decresed
-Acne clear up
-Little weight gain

Cons:

-First couple of weeks, chest pain occured
-Breasts were a little sore from enlargement
-A little moody the week I was on the "reminder" pills

I take birth control pills for hirtsuism; pcos symptom, and for acne. The pill, since I started a month and a half, has decreased the time that hair grows back, i haven't gotten break outs, but lone pimples here and there, and my breasts have gotten bigger, with maybe a couple of pounds gained from a little increase in appetite. bottom line: so far so good, hasn't caused many side effects other than the stated facts they give you and not much of it.
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April 9, 2010

Pros:

stopped major breakouts, reduced sebrum production (oil), regulated cycle, controlled hormonal acne

Cons:

melasma, terrible acne and oily skin after coming off the Pill, fears of long-term severe side effects

I used the Pill for 10 years. It really helped my adult acne at first - especially the hormonal variety that springs up two weeks before my period. After a while though, I'd say about 5 years, my body grew used to it. I even developed melasma (darkening of the skin) above my upper lip and on my cheeks and forehead. This is why I came off the pill, which resulted in EXTREMELY oily skin and major breakouts for about 6 months. Now, thanks to benzoyl peroxide used 2X per day, my acne is again under control, but I'm still dealing with the melasma. If you have moderate to severe acne, I'd recommend trying the Pill because it WILL help, just be cautious about staying on it beyond 5 years or so due to long-term severe (and not so severe) side effects.
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December 16, 2010

Pros:

clears up hormonal acne (cysts) and deeper pimples.

Cons:

takes a while to work.
might cause weight gain
makes you breakout at first

I started this in August, Tri-Cyclen, and it really took a while to see positive effects. It really does make you breakout somewhat bad at first, and usually around the mouth and chin because those are hormonal places to breakout. It took at least three months to really start to clear up, but now it's doing a great job! As for weight gain, I don't think it did that to me, and if so it wasn't anything more then maybe 2 pounds. Overall, it cleared up my acne when really nothing else worked. And it's only 10 bucks a month!
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June 6, 2010

Pros:

-Very clear skin
-Extremely predictable periods
-Lighter periods
-Lighter cramps
-Fewer mood swings
-No weight gain
-Very inexpensive
-Easy to use

Cons:

-Severe initial breakouts
-Nausea for the first week
-Mood swings for the first few weeks
-Takes several months to work

I take Ortho Cyclen generic. Instead of the changing hormone level pills of Ortho Tri-Cyclen, Ortho Cyclen is constant, steady hormones until the week of placebos. If you have problems with mid-cycle breakouts or moodiness, I'd recommend trying the single level hormone birth control. I initially broke out terribly for a week or two when I first started taking it. Halfway through the second cycle, I missed a pill and broke out again. I just started my 3rd pack and my skin looks beautiful. I still have some hyperpigmentation from the second breakout, but it's going away quickly. My skin tone looks more even, too. I started bcp to regulate my unpredictable period and ease pms symptoms, and the pill has worked wonderfully for all of those issues. I only pay $9 a month, and that's WITHOUT health insurance or prescription plans. GO GENERIC, unless you happen to be allergic or sensitive to a generic filler ingredient. Chemically, generic pills are nearly identical to brand names. Also, give bcp at least 3-4 months to begin working. Any review of someone only taking birth control for 2-3 weeks is completely invalid. Like every other acne product, it's going to take time. Also, don't resort to bcp if acne is your only issue. There are serious side effects and complications, and it's not worth the risk, imo, for potentially clearer skin when there are other methods of skin care available. If, like me, you have a hormonal imbalance that affects more than just your skin, give it a try!
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November 5, 2009

Pros:

Cleared up my acne significantly. Also regulated and diminished the effects of my period.

Cons:

Mild to moderate nausea during first week of each pack.

I have had acne for nearly 10 years and this is the ONLY thing that has made people actually notice a decrease in my acne. I've actually had friends say things like, "Wow, you're skin has really cleared up!" after 3 weeks on this pill without changing anything else about my skin care routine (except that I also cut back on smoking, which helped a lot as well!) I still get a few zits when I'm actually on my period, but for the whole week before and during my period I used to get acne so bad all over my face that it was actually painful. This made such a difference! But, it won't work for everyone.. some people's acne is not caused by hormones, so birth control will have no effect. If you tend to get more breakouts around your period, I definitely recommend trying this.
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April 7, 2011

Pros:

-Cleared up hormonal acne cysts on chin when topical treatments couldn't.
-No weight gain
-Less cramping

Cons:

-Mood swings: they're manageable, but it feels like constant mild PMS.
-It feels like I have an increased appetite for sweeter things, when I didn't before.
-Pretty bad initial breakout for the first 2 months.
-Doesn't have any effect on back acne.

This is the only treatment that effectively cleared up the large cysts that would plague my chin. I still get little pimples here and there, but nothing like the monster ones I used to have. It definitely takes at least 3 months to see results, so wait it out if you want to be certain - unless the side effects are too debilitating. I have been frustrated with my tendency to be irritable, but I'm hoping it will subside eventually. Also, I felt really nauseous the first week I began taking it, but that went away and has yet to return.
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January 23, 2011

Pros:

Prevented pregnancy

Cons:

Caused me to break out in inflammed,cystic acne
Left horrible Acne marks

This review is for Ortho Tri-Cyclen LO. I used this for 2 months and in the 2 months I broke out horribly like I never had in my life. I've used BC before and have never had this problem before. After two months of usage, I couldn't deal with the wreckage on my face so I discontinued usage and my acne stopped but the red marks have stayed!
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November 2, 2010

Pros:

larger breast, skin starting to clear, not as moody as compared to other bc ive tried, not pregnant.

Cons:

sick first week, always wanting to eat & once i eat i crave something sweet (maybe just goin threw a stage becuase i love to eat) weight goes from 113 to 118 but its worth not getting pregnant.

not a bad bc, its worth a try. ive had mirena, yaz, nuva ring now ortho lo & this has the least side effects so far. ive never had kids so mirena didnt work for me unfortunately.. severe cramping & i already have bad cramps. hope this helps.
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November 2, 2010

Pros:

*Cleared up my acne 100%
*Oil on my face decreased significantly
*Regular Periods
*Prevents Pregnancy

Cons:

*Have to remember to take it everyday
*Expensive if you don't have a low co-pay
*You must remain on it forever or your acne WILL come back
*Causes me slight depression

I have suffered from moderate acne from the time I was 13 until in my mid-twenties (when I wasn't on ortho) This had caused me to have severe depression and very low self esteem. Once I got on Ortho, my acne cleared up completely within a few months or less. I recently made the mistake of trying to to come off of this because I am not sexually active at this time and also because I wanted to save a little money every month. The first few months were fine, in fact the first two months my skin was absolutely glowing and seemed more beautiful than ever, then by the third month all heck broke loose! I started breaking out everywhere and even getting large cysts on my jawline, neck and forehead. My face resembled the Gulf oil spill and I looked absolutely horrible and greasy all the time. I had forgotten what it was like to have such bad skin after having been on this for so many years. Not only that but my hair was falling out in clumps! Everyone kept telling me to stick it out, but being in my 30's now and suffering again from acne and oily skin even worse than when I was a teenager was just too much of an emotional toll on me. Not to mention my gorgeous hair falling out in clumps. I didn't even want to leave the house on some days because it was so bad. So after 4 months of suffering all the withdrawl side-effects I decided to just go back on it again and accept the fact that I may have to be on this for the rest of my life. I'm not kidding you when I say that within 2 days of taking the pill again, my face was COMPLETELY clear again. I would rather not be on birth control at all, but to me it's worth it if it helps my skin and my self esteem. One more bit of info..if you get the generic brands of Ortho (or Ortho-lo) they absolutely DO NOT work the same, (This was my experience anyway) I would break out just as bad on those generics. Make sure you ask for brand if you want the clear skin benefits.
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May 1, 2010

Pros:

Cleared up acne. Made my breasts at lease a cup size bigger. No weight gain, just a little bit of bloating. 3 to 4 day period and almost no cramps.

Cons:

First few weeks I felt sick and extra hormonal.
Expensive for non generic without insurance.

Been on it for 6 months, all the bad things have went away and its very hard to ever want to stop because the benefits are amazing. I'm only twenty and I would recommend this to anyone.
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