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Newer Birth Control Pills Pose Risks

Oral contraceptives are known to increase a woman’s risk of blood clots. Recent research shows, however, that the newer types of birth control pills containing the progestin drospirenone raise the risk much more than older types containing levonorgestrel. Epidemiologists found that women taking pills like Yasmin, Yaz or Ocella were two or three times more likely to experience a clot than those taking pills such as Jolessa, Seasonale or Seasonique.
These clots were not deadly, but they can be quite dangerous. When blood clots lodge in the legs they cause deep vein thrombosis. If those clots break loose and travel to the lungs they can cause pulmonary embolisms. Although the overall risk of such problems is low, otherwise healthy women should be informed about this potential danger from birth control pills.
[BMJ, online April 21, 2011]

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About the Author
Terry Graedon, PhD, is a medical anthropologist and co-host of The People’s Pharmacy radio show, co-author of The People’s Pharmacy syndicated newspaper columns and numerous books, and co-founder of The People’s Pharmacy website. Terry taught in the Duke University School of Nursing and was an adjunct assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology. She is a Fellow of the Society of Applied Anthropology. Terry is one of the country's leading authorities on the science behind folk remedies..
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