Why you may want to reconsider the birth control pill

We pride ourselves on working around client's schedules, food preferences and obstacles. After all, our business cards say "nutrition troubleshooters" and our tag line is "you don't have to changes your lifestyle to fit our food plans." So, for the most part we stay mum or mum-ish when it comes to medication. We're by no means anti conventional medicine or medication where warranted. I always say if (knocking wood) I'm in a car crash, I don't want to be brought to my acupuncturist. However, there are times when we can't hold our tongues nor do we want to. We have serious concerns about the birth control pill (and all synthetic hormones frankly). And so, we discussed them in our newsletter today. I seriously hope you're signed up for our infrequent emails. If you aren't you can sign up here. But, for now, here is the link to today's "The Pill Can Make You Ill." Please give it a read and pass it along to your friends, daughters, coworkers etc.
Do you take the Pill? Is this news to you? Any questions for us?

Don't be burned but heartburn meds

If you’re someone who takes medicine daily, any medicine, it’s important to step back and consider whether you still need to be taking it. I’d also brush up on the side effects. While I’d love doctors to focus on getting patients off unnecessary meds, let’s face it medicine is a business. But if you, or someone close to you, are one of the 15 million Americans who take a certain type of acid blockers, there are some serious side effects.

There is a class of acid blocking (“heartburn”) meds called PPIs. Examples of PPI’s are Prevacid, Nexium and Prilosec. The concerns about taking these meds long-term have been out there; however, almost daily I have a client in my office who feels they’re totally safe.

Whenever I see one of these meds in a new client’s chart I ask a few questions.

How long have you been taking this medication?

Have you tried going off of it?

What modifications do you make in your diet for your reflux or heartburn?

The answers are quite similar. Most clients have been on their acid blockers for a while- usually years. They haven’t tried to discontinue them and they “can eat anything on these meds so there’s no need to change their diets.” Sigh. It’s so backward. The meds are like pain killers; they aren’t improving the condition. And just because you “can eat anything” doesn’t mean you should.

Stomach acid has important functions. We need an acidic environment for maximum vitamin and mineral absorption. On PPIs you see more bone fractures because calcium absorption is compromised. There have been cardiac side effects researched as well. There is an increased heart attack risk on PPIs. There’s also less gut diversity or less “good” bacteria when there’s less acid. Our gut flora is connected to mood and food cravings. Stomach acid helps digestion and prevents infection.

These meds should be used short term or occasionally. If you are interested in going off of your PPIs, you need to wean yourself gradually you can have rebound symptoms. As you decrease your dose, address your diet. For starters, try decreasing alcohol, sugar and caffeine. You can try a spoonful of apple cider vinegar diluted with water before meals. I also like a probiotic, vitamin D and glutamine supplement to restore your gut health.

While I only focused on these acid-blocking medications, talk to your physician if you are interested in discontinuing a particular drug. And yes, there are certain cases where you absolutely need a particular med, even the acid blockers. More often than not, this isn’t the case.

Birth Control or Weight Control?

What in this purse may affect your weight? 

Many clients come to see me for the first time when their doctors inform them their cholesterol or blood sugar is elevated. They want to improve their diet in order to avoid going on medication. I totally get this; after all why take something pharmacological if you don’t have to? Every medication can have side effects. What I don’t understand is why millions of young (and not that young) women take birth control pills without a second thought. Whether it’s a pill, injection, patch or “ring”  we should think clearly about this before taking something hormonal every day for years and years.

Then there’s the question of weight gain and certain birth control methods. Many doctors will tell you that the Pill and weight gain is a myth. Katherine O’Connell MD, of Columbia University was quoted saying, “women seem to learn early to blame a lot of side effects on their birth control. But, when women were given placebo (fake) birth control pills in recent studies, they reported the same physical complaints – including weight gain – as women who were popping the real hormone-rich Pill” Many studies echo these conclusions.  There trouble with this research is that it’s hard to determine causal relationships when many women in their 20’s (college aged) and 30’s (childbearing, aging) gain weight anyway.

Doctors also emphasize that the pills of today are innocuous compared to the early versions of birth control. The older generation of pills contained significantly more estrogen and physicians admit these were capable of causing weight gain. I have an issue with this threshold reasoning. You see it often with food ingredient research “at these levels there is no cause for concern.” Concern is concern and my thought is that today’s pills range in their hormone content and who’s to say what dose produces what effects in certain people. The reason studies may not tease out obvious trends is that everyone’s system reacts differently.  A Mayo Clinic piece mentions that estrogen can make adipose cells larger but not more numerous. Larger fat cells = weight gain.

If there’s one form of birth control that clearly produces weight gain it’s Depo Provera a progesterone-only shot (Depo-Provera contains a synthetic form of progesterone called progestin). This was touted for its convenience since it’s needed once every three months and almost foolproof when it comes to pregnancy. However, would you trade convenience for going up a couple of clothing sizes? In a study in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology in March 2009, 700 women were allowed to choose among various contraceptive methods and then were followed for three years to measure their gain in weight and body fat. Those who chose the Depo shot gained an average of 11 pounds over three years. An interesting theory is that the progestin only birth control (Mirena IUD is progestin only as well as are “mini pills”) may decrease insulin sensitivity which would increase the likelihood of fat storage.

In my work with clients, many women have symptoms when starting a pill that often dissipate at about the 3-month mark. For others, you can tell a pill does not agree with them,  hormonal symptoms do not resolve and their weight continues to rise or not drop despite eating well and exercising. A WebMD article I read stated, “weight gain is an uncommon and temporary side effect to the pill, if you happen to be one of those few women who put on pounds, talk to your doctor. Your doctor may suggest a different type of birth control pill. Why? Because all pills are not the same.” While there are many reasons and motivations to take the pill, there is another option and that’s no pill at all.
Do you take the Pill? Ever had a pill that didn't agree with you? Any concerns about the safely of birth control pills or side effects?