Dr Steve
06-09-2009, 05:24 PM
Hey Dr. Steve. Got a question for you. My chick wants to be on birth control but she has high cholesterol and smokes cigarettes, and apparently you can't be on the pill with these things, so I was wondering is there a form of the pill that she could use where high chol and smoking wouldn't interfere with/create problems or complications. If not what other birth control options would you recommend besides condoms (which we already use but hate). Thanks.
yeah, "the pill" increases risk for stroke so people already at risk are generally not prescribed it. If she's over 35, all she has to do is QUIT SMOKING and she can probably take the pill safely.
If she's already had a kid or two and doesn't desire further fertility, an IUD works nearly 100% of the time and is well tolerated.
Contraceptive foam is useless without condoms, just FYI.
If she's not had any children, or wants to preserve her fertility, a Contraceptive Diaphragm is the way to go. It's kind of gross (she has to insert it before penetration and has to leave it in until the next day, which she has to yank out this jizz-soaked latex flying saucer) and it obviously won't work if you don't use it every time, but it doesn't decrease sensation like the condom and it's very effective when used properly.
What about her cholesterol?
well, high cholesterol is a risk factor for heart disease and stroke anyway. some docs won't prescribe the pill for people with high cholesterol because they're afraid they'll get sued if the person develops a heart problem and blames them for it.
it's one of the problems in modern medicine today...we do all these cat scans and stuff to keep from getting sued (it's called "defensive medicine") all the while causing more solid tumors 20 years from now from all the radiation. it's insane
anyway, I don't believe that high cholesterol is an absolute contraindication for the pill. if you know the name of the pill they're thinking about, I could look it up for you and see. Most of the "package inserts" (clinical information about the drug that is required to be made public by the FDA) counsel "caution" for people with high cholesterol, but it is not contraindicated (prohibited for use).
hope this helps!
your pal,
steve
yeah, "the pill" increases risk for stroke so people already at risk are generally not prescribed it. If she's over 35, all she has to do is QUIT SMOKING and she can probably take the pill safely.
If she's already had a kid or two and doesn't desire further fertility, an IUD works nearly 100% of the time and is well tolerated.
Contraceptive foam is useless without condoms, just FYI.
If she's not had any children, or wants to preserve her fertility, a Contraceptive Diaphragm is the way to go. It's kind of gross (she has to insert it before penetration and has to leave it in until the next day, which she has to yank out this jizz-soaked latex flying saucer) and it obviously won't work if you don't use it every time, but it doesn't decrease sensation like the condom and it's very effective when used properly.
What about her cholesterol?
well, high cholesterol is a risk factor for heart disease and stroke anyway. some docs won't prescribe the pill for people with high cholesterol because they're afraid they'll get sued if the person develops a heart problem and blames them for it.
it's one of the problems in modern medicine today...we do all these cat scans and stuff to keep from getting sued (it's called "defensive medicine") all the while causing more solid tumors 20 years from now from all the radiation. it's insane
anyway, I don't believe that high cholesterol is an absolute contraindication for the pill. if you know the name of the pill they're thinking about, I could look it up for you and see. Most of the "package inserts" (clinical information about the drug that is required to be made public by the FDA) counsel "caution" for people with high cholesterol, but it is not contraindicated (prohibited for use).
hope this helps!
your pal,
steve