Hidden Risks of Birth Control Pill
New American Heart Association Study Links The Pill to Heart Disease
Nov 7, 2007
New Study on Oral Contraceptives
A new study from the American Heart Association shows heart disease increases in women taking birth control pills by 20-30 percent for every 10 years of use.
The "shocking" findings, reported by NBC's Dr. Nancy Snyderman (November 6, 2007), impacts as many as 11.7 million women who now take the Pill in the U.S.
The study, conducted on healthy women ages 25-55, reveals that women on the Pill show a higher incidence of plaque in their arteries, which increases the risk for heart disease and stroke.
Past Findings
Oral contraceptives had been linked to heart disease in the past, but generally regarded as a low risk.
As recently as July 2005, low-dose birth control pills were touted as being safer than pills marketed to women in decades past, even though they did carry an increased risk for heart disease and stroke, according to a report by WebMD Medical News.
Advice If Taking The Pill
The NBC Nightly New report suggested three steps women should take if they are on a birth control pill:
1. Women should ask their doctor if they are on the lowest dosage possible.
2. Beginning at age 20, women need to know their cholesterol and blood pressure levels, and continue to monitor those levels every five years.
3. By the time a woman reaches age 50, she needs to see a cardiologist and get a regular heart evaluation.
Other Risks for Heart Disease
In other studies, the American Heart Association has identified key risk factors that contribute to heart disease and stroke. Chief among them – tobacco smoking, high blood cholesterol, high blood pressure, physical inactivity, obesity and diabetes.
Diabetes
Diabetes is particularly a high risk. Compared to women without diabetes, women with diabetes are two to four times more at risk for dying from heart disease. Women and men with diabetes often have high blood pressure, high cholesterol and are overweight – increasing their risk of heart disease even more, says the AHA website.
Heart Disease Bigger Risk Than Cancer
The new study on birth control further underscores the high risk of heart disease in the United States -- often believed to be a secondary risk to cancer. But that is not true.
According to the American Heart Association, many women believe cancer is more of a threat than heart disease, but statistics show cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death for American women.
Nearly twice as many U.S. women die of heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular disease as from all forms of cancer, including breast cancer.
Some risk factors, such as genetics, are uncontrollable. But other factors such as smoking, lack of exercise and now the dosage of the birth control pill are controllable and can lower the risk of coronary heart disease, says the American Heart Association website.
