Understanding of pill's effectiveness is 'worrying'

A “WORRYINGLY” high proportion of women who are on the pill believe it is still effective if they start a pack up to 48 hours late, it has emerged. And a GP has also expressed concern about the number of women who do not take the forgotten pill immediately.

In a recent study, the Mayo-based GP found that a surprising number also thought that simple cold and flu remedies such as paracetamol interfered with the combined pill.

While most women had a good knowledge of the dos and don’ts of the contraceptive, 18 per cent were unaware of the consequences of starting a pack late, regarded as probably the most serious mistake a pill user can make.

The same proportion said that if they forgot to take the pill they would not take it immediately they remembered, apparently because they are unsure what extra precautions they must take.

Dr Maria McDermott, who works at the Moyview family practice in Ballina, said many women just stopped taking the pill if they forget one or more, and start again when they get their next period.

In a survey of 38 women she found that only one did not realise that some antibiotics interfered with the effectiveness of the pill.

Three of the women surveyed, who were in the 18-50 age group, thought the pill provided protection against sexually transmitted diseases. “We obviously tell people that condoms provide protection against STDs but the pill does not,” said Dr McDermott.

The GP surveyed women who had been on the pill for six months or more, to assess the level of knowledge about this form of contraception and to see if the participants understood the risk factors.

“The thing that probably surprised me most was that 34 per cent reported weight gain after having been on the pill,” said the family doctor who stressed that there was no evidence to suggest that the pill puts on weight.

She also looked at the smoking status of women on the pill, given that this is regarded as a risk factor for deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism.

The World Health Organisation recommends that no woman over the age of 35 should smoke if on the pill. Dr McDermott found that nine of the 38 women in her study smoked, all of them in the under-35 category.

Her study found that 10 per cent thought cold and flu remedies interfered with the effectiveness of the pill. “Another 11 per cent did not answer that question so were clearly unsure as well,” the GP pointed out.

She was also surprised to see that 12 of the 38 women thought marijuana interfered with the pill although this too is wrong.

Some 8 per cent did not realise that diarrhoea and vomiting can interfere with the pill if severe enough.

Most participants knew that the so-called “morning after” pill is actually effective for 72 hours after sex. One person thought it would still be effective up to 120 hours after sex.

The Moyview practice has responded to misunderstandings highlighted in the survey by putting in place a template for consultations as well as clearer leaflets.

Dr McDermott said a wider nationwide study was needed to assess how well informed women really were.