Key takeaways
- Certain medications may reduce hormonal birth control effectiveness, including some antibiotics like rifampin, anticonvulsants like phenytoin and carbamazepine, and antiretrovirals used to manage HIV.
- Supplements like St. John’s wort, alfalfa, and saw palmetto may interfere with birth control by affecting how your body produces or breaks down contraceptive hormones.
- Inconsistent usage, vomiting or diarrhea within a few hours of taking a pill, and improper storage conditions can also make hormonal birth control less effective. Talk with a healthcare professional about potential interactions and backup contraceptive options like condoms.
Overview
Hormonal birth control methods prevent pregnancy by regulating ovulation, thickening cervical mucus, and thinning the lining of the uterus.
Common examples of female hormonal birth control methods include:
- combined oral contraceptives (COCs): norgestimate ethinyl estradiol and levonorgestrel and ethinyl estradiol
- progestin-only pills: norethindrone (Ortho Micronor) and levonorgestrel
- contraceptive patches: ethinyl estradiol and norelgestromin (Xulane)
- hormonal intrauterine devices: levonorgestrel (Mirena)
- hormonal implants: etonogestrel (Nexplanon)
- injectable contraceptives: medroxyprogesterone acetate (Depo-Provera)
There are currently no approved male hormonal contraception options, but ongoing research includes testosterone injections and gels.
Some medications, foods, supplements, and behaviors may lower the efficacy of birth control.
Note: Sex and gender exist on spectrums. This article uses the terms “women,” “men,” or both when discussing people assigned female or male at birth to reflect language that appears in source materials.
While gender is solely about how you identify yourself, independent of your physical body, you may need to consider how your personal circumstances will affect diagnosis, symptoms, and treatment.
Need to refill a birth control medication? You can get discreet and expert on-demand care in as little as 15 minutes through Optum Perks. For $29, answer a few questions online and get a treatment plan from a US-licensed healthcare professional. Get started here.
Supplements that may affect birth control methods
Interactions between hormonal contraceptives and vitamins or supplements are possible. However, different factors, like the type of contraception, may have an effect.
You’re encouraged to let your healthcare professional know about all the supplements you take or plan to take.
Supplements that may interfere with birth control methods include:
- St. John’s wort: This herbal supplement may reduce the effectiveness of hormonal birth control methods by affecting how your body produces and uses progestin and estrogen in the liver.
- Alfalfa: This supplement may reduce the efficacy of birth control due to its potential to increase liver enzyme activity. This can lead to the faster breakdown of contraceptive hormones, which may affect how long the hormones stay in your body.
- Saw palmetto: Often used for prostate health and hair growth, this supplement may affect hormone levels.
If you take these or other supplements, you may consider using additional contraceptive measures, such as condoms.
Consider talking with a doctor before starting any new supplement while taking hormonal birth control. Doctors can provide guidance on potential interactions, suggest alternative contraceptive methods if needed, or provide a schedule likely to reduce interactions.
Medications that may reduce birth control efficacy
Nonprescription and prescription medications may affect hormonal production and balance and reduce the effectiveness of hormonal birth control methods.
Medications that may interact include:
- Antibiotics: Some antibiotics, like rifampin (Rifadin), rifabutin, and rifapentine, and certain penicillins, can reduce the efficacy of contraceptives.
- Anticonvulsants: Medications prescribed to treat seizures, such as phenytoin (Dilantin), carbamazepine (Tegretol), and topiramate (Topamax), often interact with birth control.
- Antiretrovirals: Medications used to manage HIV and AIDS, including protease inhibitors such as lopinavir ritonavir (Kaletra) and non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) such as efavirenz (Sustiva), are known to affect how well some contraceptives work.
- NSAIDs: Although rare, some nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), like ibuprofen and aspirin, may lead to adverse interactions and increase the chance of blood clots.
- Diabetes medications: Some diabetes drugs, such as pioglitazone (Actos), might interact with birth control medications.
This is not an all-inclusive list, and drug interactions may depend on different factors, most of which you may be able to manage.
Consider providing your healthcare professional with a complete list of medications you take before starting a new hormonal birth control method. They can advise you about potential interactions and discuss alternative methods of contraception if needed.
In some cases, adjusting the timing of when you take the drugs or adjusting your dosage may help minimize interactions.
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Get free cardFoods that affect birth control methods
While most foods do not directly cancel out hormonal birth control, some may indirectly lower their effectiveness. These include:
- Grapefruit: Grapefruit and its juice may interfere with how your body metabolizes medications, including birth control pills.
- High fat meals: Consuming a high fat meal while taking some birth control methods, like COCs, may slow absorption rate and effectiveness.
- Alcohol: While alcohol doesn’t directly affect birth control effectiveness, high alcohol consumption may lead to forgetfulness or inconsistent usage of birth control methods, which makes them less effective.
Other factors that may affect hormonal birth control
Other factors that may make hormonal birth control less effective include:
- Inconsistent usage: Forgetting to take a pill at the same time every day or skipping a day may make it less effective.
- Vomiting or diarrhea: If vomiting or severe diarrhea occurs within a few hours after taking the pill, its absorption may be affected, reducing its effectiveness. Using an alternative contraceptive method, like condoms, is recommended.
- Storage conditions: Exposure to extreme heat, moisture, or light conditions that do not follow storage recommendations may affect the potency of hormonal contraceptives.
Online care for birth control
The most important factor in making sure birth control is effective is taking it consistently. It’s important to make sure you always have enough of your contraceptive if you take a contraceptive pill.
Online care services, including Optum Perks Online Care, may make getting treatment easier. With these services, you can submit an online form answering a few questions about your symptoms, and a US-licensed healthcare professional will respond soon after to prescribe a treatment plan.
Birth controll refills are generally available through telehealth services, but you may need to make an in-person appointment to start birth control.
Medical perspectives
What should people consider when buying birth control online?
“Getting birth control online can be convenient. However, it’s still important for you to talk to a healthcare professional to make sure it’s safe for you. Especially if you have health conditions or are starting, stopping, or restarting birth control.”
— Alex Nguyen, PharmD, RPh, CPh
Note: Quotes represent the opinions of our medical experts. All content is strictly informational and should not be considered medical advice.
Learn more about safe online pharmacies here.
Summary
Hormonal birth control methods effectively prevent pregnancy when used according to medical recommendations. However, some factors may reduce their efficacy. These include inconsistent usage, vomiting or severe diarrhea, and drug interactions.
Consider discussing your concerns and going over birth control instructions and interactions with your healthcare professional.
Download the free Optum Perks Discount Card to save up to 80% on many prescription medications. Plus, you can now get them delivered to your home in as little as 3 days. Search for your medication here.