Do you drink grapefruit juice every morning? Have you taken the value of St. John recently? Hormonal birth control pills can interact with many other things. Find out what you’re doing that could reduce the effectiveness of your birth control, even if you didn’t know it.
Moment. It is important to take the birth control pill at the same time every day. Try to take it within the same hour, if possible. This is particularly important for progestin-only pills. If you’re constantly behind on your pills, choose another time that’s more convenient for you. Consider setting your watch to beep or a similar reminder to help you take your pills at the right time.
Storage. Do not store your medicine in a place that is too hot or too cold. You want a spot that is out of direct sunlight, like a drawer. Heat and cold can affect different medications in different ways and can often reduce their effectiveness.
Birth control pills, like all other types of pills, are a type of medicine. This means that you should always tell your doctor and pharmacist what type of birth control you are taking. This is to help you avoid complications or bad drug interactions. Here are some things that interact with birth control. (For more information on how hormonal birth control works and the risks and side effects, as well as other birth control options, visit http://www.theguideto-birthcontrol.com)
some antibiotics. Rifampin or rifapentine is an antibiotic generally used to treat tuberculosis. However, other antibiotics are usually fine when you’re on the pill. Demeclocyclene and doxycyclene are two other antibiotics that can interfere with your birth control. Ask your doctor about other alternatives and make sure they prescribe something that won’t interfere with your birth control plan.
Value of San Juan. This is an herbal remedy that you can buy at any pharmacy. It is not prescription or over the counter. Helps fight depression. However, it also decreases the effectiveness of birth control and as such should not be taken without consulting a healthcare professional.
Grapefruit and Grapefruit Juice. Grapefruit contains a compound that slows the absorption of estrogen hormones in the body. This means that it does not affect progestogen-only pills.
Antifungal medications. Certain medications taken by mouth to treat yeast infections can affect oral contraceptives. This includes griseofulvin.
Antihistamines. There is currently a debate in the medical community as to whether allergy medications or antihistamines may be related to birth control failure.
Anticonvulsants. Many medications taken to prevent seizures can decrease the effectiveness of birth control pills. Talk to your doctor before trying these.
Some other medications that could interact with your birth control include corticosteroids, bronchidilators, and certain anxiety medications. These are not fully confirmed, so ask your healthcare professional about interactions.
These interactions also apply to other hormonal birth control methods, including the patch, vaginal ring, and Depo-Provera.
Just as your other medicine can affect your birth control, remember that your birth control can also affect your other medicine. Avoiding negative drug interactions is important to you both ways, so always ask your doctor or pharmacist about drug interactions when you fill a new prescription.