Birth Control Pills for Acne

Girls, know, that this is your age and time. It is your choice, your freedom and your opinion. If you are exercising your choice and are on birth control pills, let me tell you one of their added advantages. They can help cure your acne. Yes, birth control pills for acne management are very popular worldwide. Though oral contraceptives can effectively treat acne in some women, they are not used solely in the treatment of acne. Birth control pills for acne are only taken if all other acne treatments have not yielded results, or if the woman needs an oral contraceptive anyways. They are almost always used in conjunction with topical acne remedies, like topical retinoids, benzoyl peroxide, azelaic acid, etc. Let us know more about some of the best birth control pills for acne and about how they work.

Effect of Birth Control Pills on Acne
Oral contraceptives are made of a combination of progestin and estrogen. They manipulate the natural female reproductive cycles and change the internal hormonal patterns. Birth control pills reduce the amount of testosterone within the body and this decreases the hormonal acne breakouts. The reduction in testosterone production, leads to lesser oil production by the sebaceous glands and hence lesser pore blockages. It takes two to three months, minimum, to notice a definite improvement in the acne problem. The problem could also worsen during the interim. Some birth control pills increase the testosterone levels in the body and this can actually make the acne worse. So, tell your doctor to prescribe you the right birth control pills for acne.

Birth control pills work particularly well in curing the acne of PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) patients. Certain birth control pills contain progesterone, which limits the androgen hormones. It is these androgens that trigger the oil glands to produce more sebum, leading to acne. The progestins can act as androgens as well as anti-androgens. The pills that act as androgens worsen the acne problems. The best birth control pills for acne happen to be anti-androgenic. So look for those birth control pills that contain less androgenic activity, such as norgestimate, norethindrone, desogestrol, ethynodial or levonorgestrel.

Birth Control Pills Approved for Acne
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved certain birth control pills as acne treatments. They are:

• Ortho Tri Cyclen.
• Estrostep.
• Yaz

The birth control pill named Yasmin, which is similar to Yaz, is also on its way to getting an approval from the FDA as a birth control pill for acne management. While these oral contraceptives do help with the acne problem, they give rise to several side effects. Some of these are mentioned in the paragraph given below.

Possible Side Effects of Birth Control Pills for Acne
The side effects of birth control pills for acne are basically the side effects of taking the pill itself. The side effects can be listed down as follows.

• Nausea
• Weight Gain
• Breast Tenderness
• Menstrual Spotting
• Mood Swings
• Blood Clots
• Strokes
• Headaches
• Gallstones
• High Blood Pressure
• Depression

Some of the side effects disappear after a few months of usage, as the body gets used to the changed hormonal balance. The side effects vary between the combined (contain a combination of both, estrogen and progestin) oral contraceptives and the progestin-only contraceptive pills.

Birth control pills for acne take about 3 to 6 months to show some noticeable improvement, but they definitely work on the acne that worsens during ovulation and menstruation. The perfect use of combined birth control pills lowers the chances of pregnancy to 1 or fewer women out of a hundred, only if acne control abilities are a little lesser and slower. In comparison, the progestin-only contraceptives have a higher pregnancy risk, 2 out of hundred, but are better for curing the acne. Choose wisely, for the lesser of the two evils. Who would have thought that we'd be killing two birds with one stone, great skin care and the choice of charting your own motherhood plans. Utilize with care, your right to birth control.