Title: 
The Link Between Antibiotics and Birth Control

Word Count:
575

Summary:
The article discusses the connection of antibiotics and the 

use of birth control pills. The article explains how these 

two medications react and how each substance acts on its 

own. The article also makes a claim that the barrier form of 

birth control is best recommended for those who use both 

antibiotics.


Keywords:
antibiotics and birth control


Article Body:
Earlier studies seemed to indicate that if antibiotics and 

birth control pills are taken simultaneously, more women got 

pregnant than one would normally expect. Medications like 

ampicillin and tetracycline are suspected of interfering 

with the effectiveness of birth control pills. However, from 

all the studies that saw this connection, they have shown 

that antibiotics do not increase the pregnancy rate at all, 

and points out that older information was not reliable 

enough to draw conclusions about pregnancy rates on any of 

the antibiotics. From recent studies, some reported 

antibiotics show no signs in affecting the metabolism of 

birth control pills. An example of such antibiotics include 

Cipro, which does not alter metabolism; and Diflucan, a 

product that does not decrease estrogen but actually 

increases it.


Still, if one takes both antibiotics and birth control 

products, the contraceptive may not work, therefore 

increasing the chances of becoming pregnant. Oral 

contraceptives or birth control pills work by affecting the 

production of certain hormones that can stop a woman's 

ovaries from releasing eggs; or make the lining of the 

uterus thinner so that fertilized eggs cannot attach to the 

uterus; and it can make it harder for the sperm to reach the 

eggs. All these are done by two hormones: the estrogens and 

progestins.


The reason behind antibiotics and birth control when taken 

together is that some antibiotics make it hard for the body 

to absorb the hormones contained in birth control pills. 

Other antibiotics makes the body get rid of the hormones 

even faster, and if either of this happens, the lower 

hormonal levels in the body may allow a woman to get 

pregnant even if she does not want to. Such antibiotics 

cause the enzymes in the liver to increase the break down of 

estrogens and thereby decrease the levels of estrogens in 

the body and the effectiveness of the birth control pills. 

Some of the antibiotics with this kind of effect include 

rifampin, penicillin, tetracyclines, and trimethoprim, among 

others. Another reason on how antibiotics interfere with the 

effectiveness of birth control pills is by the reduction of 

re-circulation of estrogens within the body. Estrogens in 

birth control pills are broken down by conversion in the 

liver to other chemicals which are secreted into the 

intestines in the bile produced by the liver. Bacteria in 

the intestine are able to convert these chemicals back into 

the active estrogen which is then re-absorbed into the 

body.. This re-circulation is called entero-hepatic cycling. 

Theoretically, antibiotics can kill the bacteria that 

convert the inactive chemicals to the active estrogen, and, 

therefore, may interfere with the effectiveness of birth 

control pills. Unwanted pregnancies could occur. Although it 

has not been proven that unwanted pregnancies can occur by 

this means, drug manufacturers caution that antibiotics 

could decrease the effectiveness of birth control pills.


However, other antibiotics will not affect contraceptive 

implants. An implant is a capsule inserted under the skin on 

the inside of a woman's upper arm. This reduces the chances 

of becoming pregnant by releasing progestin into one's 

bloodstream. To make sure that pregnancy prevention is at 

hand, always inform the doctor if one is taking birth 

control pills. The doctor may then prescribe another 

medication, or discuss possible drug interactions. If in 

case one is under prescription medications, one can still 

take birth control pills only if there is a barrier form of 

birth control. This includes the use of a condom, a 

diaphragm, or a cervical cap.