Birth control pill progestins

Birth control pills Progestin-estrogen combination Various brands... 

In addition to the many hundreds of steroids isolated from plants and animals, thousands more have been synthesized in pharmaceutical laboratories in a search for new drugs. Among the best-known synthetic steroids are the oral contraceptives and anabolic agents. Most birth-control pills are a mixture of two compounds, a synthetic estrogen, such as ethynylestradiol, and a synthetic progestin, such as norethindrone. Anabolic steroids, such as stanozolol and methandrostenolone (Dianabol), are synthetic androgens that mimic the tissue-building effects of natural testosterone. 

Birth control pill that contains only progestin, a synthetic progesterone. 

A low dosage of progestin ( mini-pill ) is used, in the form of medroxyprogesterone acetate, which is active at a very low dose. The mini-pill does not inhibit ovulation, but rather interferes with the endometrium and the cervical mucus. The use of this pill prevents most of the side effects of oral contraception, specifically nausea, water retention, and in some cases thrombophlebitis. However, a lower success rate and other frequent side effects have reduced the widespread acceptance of this preparation. Nevertheless, the mini-pill has a role to play in certain specific situations. For example, in an uncommon form of epilepsy called catamenial epilepsy, female patients will experience seizures at particular times during their menstrual cycle, reflecting the fact that seizure focus is stimulated by estrogens but inhibited by progestins. In such women, the mini-pill may afford not only birth control but also improved seizure control. 

There has been considerable concern about the health effects of the pill, and many studies have been done. These are extremely powerful compounds and are taken by a large number of healthy women over an extended period, not to cure disease, but to prevent pregnancy. Although there was some evidence for heightened risk of cardiovascular disease in early studies, this risk decreased as the amount of estrogen in the pill was decreased. Today, the amount of estrogen has been reduced from 150 pg per pill for Enovid to 30 to 35 pg per pill. The progestin component has also been reduced, and the pill is a relatively safe method of birth control. 

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