Birth Control- Part I

In my explorations, I was reading about all the dangers about putting drugs into our bodies. I stopped going to the doctor as often, in exchange for chiropractic adjustments and healthy food. I stopped eating processed food, and replaced it with organic produce and turkey burgers. I've even rejected the idea of a hospital birth for a drug free home birth. 

All this time, I was still putting synthetic, harmful hormones in my body through birth control. 

This is something so "normal," I did not even think about the dangers involved with it. I knew there was side effects, but never really realized what it was doing to my body. 

I came across this article and it got me really thinking about birth control. She explained the affect of birth control like this: 

"Here is something that you probably were not informed of: the pill ages the cervix about two years for every one year of use. This is one reason why pill use can lead to infertility later on (and why the contraceptive industry fuels the multi-billion dollar infertility industry). The cervix produces different types of cervical fluid, and each type has a different function. When a woman is in the infertile part of her cycle, her body produces a type of cervical fluid that blocks sperm from entering her cervix and uterus. During the 100 hours of her cycle when a woman is capable of becoming pregnant, her cervix produces types of fluid that protect, nourish, and guide sperm to her possibly waiting egg, as well as filtering out defective sperm. One function of the pill is that it changes her cervix so that it increases the amount of crypts that make the fluid that blocks sperm and decreases the amount of crypts that aid conception. This process happens naturally with age, but it happens twice as fast for pill-users."

That scared the crap out of me! I have been on birth control for 3 years, so this means my cervix has aged by 6 years! My nuvaring went out the window when I read this. 

And as I mentioned in my last blog, women lose 90% of their eggs by the time they are 30. I am not sure if this is before or after the prematurely aging cervix because of birth control or not, considering most women have been on birth control. I'm hoping for the sake of those of us who have taken birth control, the cervical aging from birth control is included in this research. 

That same article talking about fertility, says birth control does not affect fertility. We hear this everywhere, but this article even has charts showing the differences in cervix between pill users and non-pill users. 

Also, the World Health Organization just added birth control to the level 1 carcinogen list, along with tobacco and asbestos.  Here's the scoop: 

"The WHO said it raises risk for cancers of the breast, liver and cervix. Although it decreases the risk of ovarian and endometrial cancers, cancer groups expect 27,000 more American women will die in 2012 from cancers of the breast, liver and cervix than will die from cancers of the ovaries and endometrium. It would not make sense for doctors to advise women to take a carcinogen to prevent cancer, although some still do.

Second, two recent studies have strongly linked use of oral contraceptives with a deadly, treatment-resistant form of breast cancer called “triple-negative breast cancer.” The latter study found that women who started using oral contraceptives before age 18 multiplied their risk of TNBC by 6.4 times. TNBC occurs most often among African-Americans and women under age 50.

Third, a 2006 meta-analysis in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings reported a 44 percent increased risk of premenopausal breast cancer among women who started using oral contraceptives before first full-term pregnancy."

TERRIFYING. 

Go reread that last sentence. 44% higher risk of premenopausel breast cancer before first pregnancy? What the heck? 

Why in the world would doctors not tell us about this?? I have a grandmother who had breast cancer 3 times, and it is possible I carry the gene. I plan on breastfeeding to help reduce my risk, but now that my risk is now higher I'll be lucky to even out.  

Did you see that study was done in 2006? I was a sophomore in high school then. If this information was released then, why is it that when I got married in 2010, no one even hesitated about me getting on birth control? 

I'm obviously angry about this, and you should be too. People should know the facts before they put this stuff in their bodies.

I do not like to talk politics, but contraception is a huge difference between the two candidates, Romney has spoken out about birth control, but why didn't he bring up these facts? Obama is adamant on having free birth control available, should we say "free cancer all around!" if he wins? Why is he promoting this when we have so much research against it? 

I am honestly angry at how much our society allows us to put harmful things into our bodies.

It's time to make that stop. 

Birth control began because women wanted to be able to have sex with whoever and whenever they want in the "sexual revolution." Women loved that they had control over their bodies, but I just wonder how many of them would throw that out the window once they have the facts. Is a higher risk of cancer really worth the thrill of promiscuity?

This blog is getting wayy too long. In my next post I will talk about how women can gain even greater control over there bodies while preventing or increasing their chances of pregnancy. 

Please let me know your thoughts on this. Does this research also anger you? Why do you think we do not know these facts? Join the conversation on our facebook.

 Here is some more great articles about the affects of birth control, if you want some more crazy scary facts we do not know about birth control. This article also touches on the many different forms (sterilzation, vasectomies, IUDs,etc) and their affect on the body. 

Stay tuned for Part II.