Birth control + Weight gain
Before diving into today’s post, let’s take a brief intermission to spotlight our resident comment-section superstar: the mystery human who keeps blessing us with trolling comments behind a charming display of anonymity. We see you. We admire your unwavering dedication. It must take real commitment to scroll through every single post just to be a dick — like a stuck record with stage fright. Please, carry on with your secret mission! You’re basically our biggest fan, and we couldn’t be more grateful for the free publicity. ;) Now, shall we proceed with something worth reading? Let’s!
Appetizer - Does birth control ACTUALLY impact your weight? Is it a problem with increased appetite, hormones, or wtf is going on? My friends prompted me to write about this, so let’s break it all down.
Entree - After perusing probably ~30 different studies, I picked out some of my favorites and will link them below if you’re interested in reading… Overall, in many of the studies there was no significant difference in weight for women using combined birth control pills, IUD, implants, etc, compared to women who were not on oral contraceptives. The ONLY increase that was consistent across studies seemed to be age. Average weight gain per year of age throughout the studies seemed to be able 0.45 kg/year. (Remember - in U.S. 0.45 x 2.2 = 0.992 lbs)
That being said, there were several studies noted that saw significant body composition changes - more body fat compared to lean mass in DEPO users (the birth control shot) compared to hormonal IUD or Oral contraceptives. There were different studies that presented information in regard to higher body fat in women on contraceptives compared to women that were NOT on any form of contraceptives.
SO, why do we so often see weight gain in females that start birth control. If we take a literal look at things - when do most women start birth control? Typically from ages 13-45. There is a LOT of life changes happening 13-15, let alone all the way to 45~ish. I personally yapped and hypothesized with friends that if you are starting a birth control around 16 years old, manyyyy other factors may be contributing to that weight gain. If you are starting college and birth control at the same time? Prayers for you! Alcohol, sedentary lifestyle (studying), extra stress, the list just goes on! All of these things are linked to weight gain, along with different eating habits/styles and different workout patterns. What can we do to combat the weight gain we thought was caused by this birth control?? You can make a goal to try to continuously get enough movement, practice stress relief, healthy eating, and overall being kind to yourself. We are all in a strange phase of life sometimes, just remember you only get this one body and one life, so take care of yourself!!
Dessert - Birth control can be an extremely useful tool for some, while others may experience extreme side effects. Consult your doctor and have an open conversation with them that involves side effects and what could be possibly be going on if you are experiencing significant weight gain after starting a contraceptive. Weight gain is so frustrating, but overall birth control has not proved to be a huge factor contributing to it.
Much love,
Jadon
Extra info for the curious readers -
Gallo, M. F., Lopez, L. M., Grimes, D. A., Carayon, F., Schulz, K. F., & Helmerhorst, F. M. (2014,
January 29). Combination contraceptives: Effects on weight. The Cochrane database of
systematic reviews. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10640873/
I;, L. I. A. (n.d.). The long-term influence of combined oral contraceptives on body weight. Human
reproduction (Oxford, England). https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21507999/
Lopez, L. M., Edelman, A., Chen, M., Otterness, C., Trussell, J., & Helmerhorst, F. M. (2013, July 2).
Progestin-only contraceptives: Effects on weight. The Cochrane database of systematic reviews.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3855691/
Vickery, Z., Madden, T., Zhao, Q., Secura, G. M., Allsworth, J. E., & Peipert, J. F. (2013, October).
Weight change at 12 months in users of three progestin-only contraceptive methods.
Contraception. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3951762/
