Side Effects (continued)

Stomach/Intestines

• Gallbladder disease (bile duct stones) ^4,7,8
• Hepatic adenomas or benign liver tumors ^7,8
• Nausea ^7,8
• Vomiting ^7,8
• Gastrointestinal symptoms (such as abdominal cramps and bloating) ^7,8
• Cholestatic jaundice (jaundice caused by thickened bile) ^4,7,8
• Reduced tolerance to carbohydrates ^7,8
• Changes in appetite ^7,8
• Impaired renal function (impaired kidney function) ^7,8
• Colitis (digestive disease characterized by inflammation of the colon) ^7,8
• Hemolytic uremic syndrome (kidney failure and low platelet count in the blood) ^7,8

Pregnancy

• Typical use of combined oral contraceptive pills prevents a diagnosed pregnancy in only 90 to 96 percent of women, which means that four to 10 women out of every 100 using the pill for one year will have a diagnosed pregnancy. ^4,6,10
• The pill's third mechanism is to change the lining of the endometrium (the lining of the womb), which creates a hostile environment for a newly created human being. The tiny baby cannot implant and is spontaneously aborted by the body. ^4,5,6,11,12
• As quoted in the booklet Does the Birth Control Pill Cause Abortions? by Randy Alcorn, a representative of the Ortho-McNeil pharmaceutical company said, "If you end up with a fertilized egg [new human being], it [the baby boy or girl] won't implant and grow because of the less hospitable endometrium." ¹
• "It seems unlikely that implantation would be possible in the altered endometrium developed under the influence of most of the suppressants [of ovulation]." ³
• Ectopic pregnancy ⁴
• Drugs that are known to interact with the pill to cause an increased likelihood of pregnancy:
  • Rifampin ^7,8
  • Drugs used for epilepsy, such as barbiturates ^7,8
  • Phenobarbital ^7,8 (anticonvulsant; can also be used as anti-anxiety medication)
  • Topiramate (TOPAMAX^{® 7,8}; prescribed for migraines and, in higher doses, for Chiari patients)
  • Carbamazepine (Tegretol^{® 7,8} is one brand; anticonvulsant medication)
  • Phenytoin (Dilantin^{® 7,8} is one brand; anti-seizure medication)
  • Phenylbutazone (Butazolidin^{® 7,8} is one brand; nonsteroid, anti-inflammatory medication)
• Certain drugs used in the treatment of HIV or AIDS ^7,8
• Certain antibiotics ^7,8
• St. John's wort ^7,8