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“For decades, hormonal birth control has left women in the dark about their bodies and their fertility. Much of this article may be a shock to you, but praise God that you now know the truth. Let this spur you on to being intentional about being a good steward of your body and your health.”
–REAGAN ESCUDÉ SCOTT
There’s a growing topic of conversation among conservative women about hormonal birth control, and it’s actually not what you may think. More women than ever are taking back control of their health from a system that seemingly didn’t have their best interest at heart in the first place, and they are tossing the little pink pill in exchange for other forms of contraception like fertility awareness-based methods (FABMs), which help women avoid pregnancy by providing tools that show when they are fertile and infertile and most likely to get pregnant during their menstrual cycle.
For as long as most of us can remember, birth control pills and other forms of hormonal birth control have been passed out by gynecologists like candy.
Acne? Birth control! Irregular periods? Birth control! Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)? Here’s your little packet of pills for the month! Sexually active? Don’t you know you should be on birth control?
In the midst of all of our yearly visits, no one seemed to bother explaining the implications of being on the pill or what the synthetic hormones in the pill actually did to our bodies. No one gave us alternatives to our health concerns, and no one really attempted to get to the root of the problem when we were determined to have painful periods or endometriosis.
Not anymore. We now have more access to information than ever, and women across the country are finally saying no to hormonal birth control.
Here’s what doctors and pharmaceutical companies don’t tell you about “the pill” or “the patch” or “the shot” or other delivery mechanisms:
Hormonal birth control (HBC) actually depletes the body of essential vitamins and minerals needed in order to function properly. Magnesium, vitamin B2, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, vitamin C, vitamin E, and zinc are all things largely affected by HBC, and they’re all things your body needs to function properly.
A deficiency in magnesium, for example, causes weaker bones over time. Low magnesium levels may even cause you to suffer from bad headaches, sleepiness, weakness, and even anxiety.
Zinc is one of the most important minerals when it comes to helping your body produce testosterone — a vital hormone (in the right amounts) needed for a healthy sex drive. It’s no wonder that so many women on HBC report experiencing sexual dysfunction, low arousal, difficulty orgasming, and reduced desire in the bedroom.
HBC has also been found to change the physical structure of your brain due to the high hormonal content in the birth control. In addition to all of this, HBC has been found to increase your risk of breast, cervical, liver, and uterine cancers; disrupt your thyroid function; destroy your gut biome; and increase inflammation, triggering autoimmune disease, chronic pain, and even cancer. And the daily dose of estrogen it provides has been found to increase your risk of blood clots, strokes, and pulmonary embolism.
The health risks don’t stop there.
Yes, you read that right. Hormonal birth control actually changes who you are attracted to.
Here’s how it works:
The major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes create body odors that indicate whether or not a person’s immune system is different from your own. When you smell the body odors of a potential partner, these genes create an immune response to determine whether or not his immune system is a good fit. God designed women, especially during ovulation, to be naturally drawn to men with different immune systems than their own because their future children receive a stronger, more broad immune system as a result.
Studies have shown that couples with differing MHC genes are more emotionally and sexually satisfied, and they are even more likely to be faithful.
When you throw HBC into the mix, a woman’s ovulation cycle is suppressed. As a result of her being on the pill, her scent preference starts to shift towards men with more similar MHC genes. This not only tricks her mind into being attracted to people she may otherwise not be attracted to, but it can also lead to fertility problems.
Crazy, I know. But there’s more. You may notice that you or women you know who are still on HBC also suffer from depression. There’s a reason for this.
Vitamin B6 is another essential vitamin that is suppressed by HBC, and it’s needed to help your body produce serotonin, or the “happy hormone.” Without it, you are at a higher risk for depression and anemia.
Actually, women on HBC are 23 percent more likely to be prescribed antidepressants. Recent studies from the Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre in Australia found that adolescent girls, especially, who take HBC are twice as likely to be depressed than women who don’t take it, and overall, teenagers are at an 80 percent increased risk of taking antidepressants after being on the pill.
Sadly, this is something most women aren’t aware of before they are prescribed HBC.
There are three ways that different contraceptive medications and devices prevent pregnancy:
The first two mechanisms listed are considered “barrier methods,” meaning they are true pregnancy prevention methods that prevent the sperm from reaching the egg.
However, the third mechanism, which thins the lining of the uterus to prevent a newly conceived baby from implanting, is used as a “fail-safe” in all forms of hormonal birth control, including the pill, the implant, IUD, the shot, the ring, and the patch.
In the event that the first two mechanisms fail and the sperm successfully reaches and fertilizes the egg, the third mechanism is put in place so that the lining of the uterus is thinned, making the body inhospitable for a baby. Rather than implanting on the uterine wall, the embryo will die.
A long-term thinning of the uterine lining can also damage your body’s ability to rebuild, causing infertility and miscarriage in the future.
Okay, you say, “I’m tossing the birth control. What now?”
You have plenty of alternatives — barrier contraceptives, abstinence (highly encouraged if you’re not married), or one of the FABCs, for example — that are not only better for your health and non-abortive, but some are just as effective as HBC!
If you want more information to learn about your body, your hormones, tracking your cycle, fertility awareness, and staying in tune with your body, I highly recommend reading Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler. Weschler does a great job of giving insight into the anatomical and physiological function of the female body in an understandable and entertaining way, all while encouraging women to take natural measures that will help them avoid pregnancy, conceive, and recognize changes in their hormones, phases in their cycle, and their overall health.
For decades, hormonal birth control has left women in the dark about their bodies and their fertility. Much of this article may be a shock to you, but praise God that you now know the truth. Let this spur you on to being intentional about being a good steward of your body and your health.
If you have been on hormonal birth control in the past or are currently taking it and you feel convicted after receiving this information, know that there is grace and forgiveness for you in Jesus Christ.
A repentant heart is one that is secure in Christ, and today you can thank Him for revealing sin to you that you may not have known you were committing. Scripture says that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us, cleansing us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). There is now no condemnation for you who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). Praise the Lord!
“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His purpose, which He set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.”
–Ephesians 1:7-10
Follow Reagan on Twitter! @thereaganscott
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