Can Birth Control Pills Affect Immunity?

Introduction:

Birth control pills have effects on the immune system. The immune system is made of white blood cells and lymph nodes and helps fight infections caused by bacteria, viruses, and parasites. Birth control pill use is linked to autoimmune diseases in which the immune system turns against the body.

What Are Birth Control Pills?

Birth control pills are not hormones, but they are endocrine disrupters. They affect the hormones in the body. These are used by women of childbearing age to avoid or prevent pregnancy. Oral contraceptives are considered a popular form of family planning.

Healthy individuals mainly use birth control pills to avoid pregnancy and not treat health-related conditions. They can damage women’s mental health, fertility, and immune response.

Birth control pills put women at risk because of their side effects.

Side effects include:

• Developing blood clots.

• Getting affected by heart attack and stroke.

• Gallbladder can be affected.

• Tumors of the liver may develop.

• Vision gets affected.

• Depression.

• There is a change in appetite.

• Change in sexual functioning.

• Cancer of the breast or reproductive organs.

• Symptoms of the gastrointestinal tract.

• Increased weight.

• Reactions related to allergy.

There are many more side effects of birth control pills.

What Is Immunity?

Immunity is a state or quality of the body that protects against infectious diseases. There are three types of immunity present. They are innate, adaptive, and passive. The work of the immune system is to identify and remove dangerous germs that enter the body. The immune system is made of organs, cells, and proteins, and all these work together.

How Are Birth Control Pills and Immunity Linked?

Birth control pills are endocrine disruptors. These are not hormones, but they affect hormones, thereby affecting many body processes responsible for creating and balancing hormones. Because of this, detrimental effects may be observed.

It is also observed that endocrine disruptors can affect the function of the immune system. Men and women are different in their immune responses. The reason behind it is hormones. Both men and women have hormones, but their amounts vary. Women are different from men when it comes to having babies. Hence, the immune system is designed to identify self and non-self.

Women have a complex and delicate balance of hormones. These help with the immune response. Some of the hormones, like estrogen and progesterone, are protective, have an anti-inflammatory action, and help cell proliferation. Studies have shown that men exhibit weaker immune responses.

Hormones are essential for certain important processes in the body. Their levels should be balanced. If their levels are not balanced, it may lead to an autoimmune response or a weakened immune system.

Different hormones affect the body in different ways.

• Estrogen causes cells to grow and helps produce antibodies.

• Progesterone affects T-cells.

When birth control pills or endocrine disruptors are taken, they change the levels of hormones. This, in turn, blunts or heightens the body's response. 75 percent of women are affected by autoimmune diseases. In the case of autoimmune disease among women, they show increased levels of certain hormones. It is also noted that levels of those hormones should not be low. But when birth control pills are taken, this messes with the balance of hormones.

Birth control pills not only affect the immune response but also affect overall health. It harms fertility, mental health, and long-term health outcomes.

What Are the Effects of Birth Control Pills on the Health of the Body?

Birth control pills deplete important vitamins and minerals like selenium, zinc, and the amino acid tyrosine from the body, which are essential for the normal functioning of the thyroid.

• The hormones in birth control pills affect the production of estrogen and progesterone through a negative feedback loop mechanism. These pills increase the artificial hormones in the body and suppress natural hormones like estrogen and progesterone. This, in turn, prevents ovulation and thinning of the uterine lining.

• These pills increase the risk of blood clots and stroke. This type of risk is higher among women aged 35 and those with a smoking habit.

• These pills affect bones by thinning them and causing osteoporosis.

• Pills affect the immune system by stimulating a shift from the Th1-Th2 immune branch. This imbalance causes autoimmune diseases to worsen.

• These disrupt the normal flora, allowing yeast and other pathogens to develop or grow.

• These pills alter the preference for their mates due to hormonal changes.

• These pills may cause cancers of the liver, breast, and ovary.

• Despite doing exercises, birth control pills prevent muscle building.

• These pills lower sexual desire by suppressing testosterone.

• High doses of estrogen in birth control pills increase the activity of thyroxin-binding globulin ( TBG). The function of TBG is to bind thyroid hormones. Increased activity of TBG leads to less availability of thyroid hormones for the body's functioning.

• Many birth control pills contain lactose. This causes food intolerance among a few individuals.

• These pills can lower dehydroepiandrosterone ( DHEA) levels by affecting their production. DHEA is called an antiaging hormone. DHEA is also lowered in the case of autoimmune disease.

• These pills deplete important vitamins like folate, B12, and B6. A deficiency of these vitamins leads to anemia, birth defects during pregnancy, depression, and other health issues.

• Hormonal birth control pills may suppress the gonadotropins. These hormones are generally secreted by the pituitary gland. This also affects the immune response.

• The use of birth control pills is linked to Crohn’s disease. The risk of getting affected is higher.

What Are the Various Types of Hormonal Contraception?

Some studies showed that sex hormone affects the immune system and can result in autoimmunity, seen mostly in females. Hormonal contraception is divided as

• Combined hormonal contraception, which has estrogen and anti-androgenic progestin, is used to block the effects of androgen.

• Progestin-only contraception contains only progestin.

Hormonal contraceptive is present as skin patches, birth control pills, and vaginal rings. Progestin-only contraceptives are present as implants, injections, and IUDs (intrauterine devices).

Conclusion:

Birth control pills are given to avoid or prevent pregnancy. It has many side effects. Hence, it is important to know about birth control pills, how they are linked to the immune system, and their effects. Knowing this helps to seek advice from healthcare professionals regarding using birth control pills. Knowledge helps avoid many problems related to using birth control pills.