Is Menstruation Necessary?

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Is Menstruation Necessary?

Posted by: Dr. Mercola
August 03 2007 | 45,998 views

Lybrel, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals’ new birth control pill that eliminates women’s periods, is now on the market. Unlike traditional oral contraceptives, which include a week of placebo pills at the end of the cycle to bring on menstruation, Lybrel has no placebos, and women on the pill do not menstruate.

While many women are wary of Lybrel, fearing that it takes away a key sign of health, fertility, and womanhood among females, others welcome the convenience and freedom from menstruation’s side effects that the drug offers.

Doctors are also divided on the issue. Some maintain that Lybrel is safe, and point out that traditional birth control pills have been prescribed without the placebos to halt menstruation in women with painful periods, or who wanted to avoid menstruation during a special occasion, for years.

Further, they say women must traditionally menstruate to shed the thick lining of the uterus that builds up during the cycle. Women on oral contraceptives only build a thin lining and, therefore, they may not need to menstruate.

Women are also designed to stop menstruating during pregnancy and nursing, however in today’s culture, with increasing numbers of women forgoing motherhood for other pursuits, they often continue menstruating monthly.

This may be “too many periods,” according to one doctor.

However, other experts point to potential risks of long-term use, as Lybrel was only studied for one year. There are also social implications. Eliminating menstruation, according to many sociologists and anthropologists, tells young women that there’s something wrong or shameful about the natural menstrual cycle, and therefore with the female body.

Houston Chronicle July 31, 2007

Dr. Mercola's Comments:

Nearly two-thirds of women surveyed by Wyeth reportedly said they’d be interested in giving up their monthly periods. As a result, analysts have predicted that Lybrel stands to bring in $250 million a year for Wyeth.

Women are likely being influenced by the many doctors purporting that Lybrel is safe and healthy. And it very well may not cause any major problems for women who take it for a few months or even a few years.

But there’s something major here that can’t be denied. No one knows what influence eliminating menstruation will have on women in the long run. Lybrel has only been tested for ONE year, yet some women may opt to give up their periods for decades.

Let's get things straight. Women were designed to have periods and, while that can easily be manipulated with artificial or even natural hormones, if a woman chooses to do this regularly, there is a high likelihood that it will contribute to some type of physiological imbalance that will ultimately cause her more harm than good. I realize that women regularly go through periods without menstrual cycles when they are pregnant, but this is virtually impossible to precisely replicate and any attempts to do will likely result in inevitable future harm.

There is at least one known risk of this: long-term suppression of periods will minimize blood loss and could contribute to iron overload syndromes that are so pervasive in men. Elevated iron stores are one of the primary risk factors for cancer and heart disease. Other studies point to increased risk of different female cancers.

There is no telling what other implications a loss of menstruation may contribute to. Only time will tell.

Aside from the unknown effects of messing with Mother Nature, all birth control pills, Lybrel included, contain artificial hormones that your body is not designed to be exposed to, ever.

Long-term use of these synthetic hormones will invariably increase your risk of developing serious chronic illness, including cancer, blood clots, and more.

If women really want to “liberate” themselves, Lybrel is not the answer. Ditching all synthetic birth control and using safer, more natural options, like barrier methods or natural family planning, will truly liberate women by working with their natural cycles, rather than artificially eliminating them.

Even though they are very convenient, I strongly advise avoiding birth control pills like the plague as invariably with enough time they seem to cause some health complication in most women. Please find another safer option as soon as possible. There's simply no reason to use dangerous synthetic hormones, and risky surgically implantable devices at all. There are many safe birth control alternatives, among them:

Male condoms: Condoms have a 98 percent effectiveness rate when used correctly. A water-based lubricant will increase the effectiveness; do not use an oil-based lubricant, however, as they break the latex.

Female condoms: These thin, soft polyurethane pouches fitted inside the vagina before sex are 95 percent effective. Female condoms are less likely to tear than male condoms.

Diaphragm: Diaphragms, which must be fitted by a doctor, act as a barrier to sperm. When used correctly with spermicidal jellies, they are 92 to 98 percent effective.

Cervical cap: This heavy rubber cap fits tightly against the cervix and can be left in place for 48 hours. Like the diaphragm, a doctor must fit the cap. Proper fitting enhances the effectiveness above 91 percent.

Spermicides: Creams, jellies and suppositories contain chemicals that kill sperm. While they can increase the effectiveness of other forms of contraception listed here, I don't recommend using them alone.

Other natural methods to scientifically check your fertility.

Additionally, any of the above methods can be combined with natural family planning, in which the woman charts her cycle by regularly monitoring her first morning oral temperatures with an accurate thermometer, and also checks her cervical mucous for appearance and "ferning" patterns. If these two methods are combined, then their effectiveness approaches that of birth control pills.