- Normal birth control contains 21 active pills which contain hormones and 7 placebo pills which do not; the placement of the placebo pills causes withdrawal bleeding each month. Extended-cycle and continuous cycle birth control have fewer or no placebo pills, and more active pills for a longer cycle.
- Extended-cycle and continuous birth control are not particularly new; doctors have been prescribing normal birth control pills for many years to patients, and instructing them to only take active pills rather than the placebos.
- Two types of extended-cycle contraception are on the market, called Seasonale and Seasonique, both of which allow 91 day cycles, or four periods every year. Lybrel is a continuous cycle birth control pill that eliminates periods alltogether.
- Many women would prefer to simply have fewer periods as a lifestyle choice, but women with health conditions that are worsened by menstruation or who have particularly heavy or painful periods will find these options useful.
- Some people have wondered whether extended-cycle and continuous cycle birth control is safe, however the bulk of research suggests that a lack of menstruation does not have an ill effect on a women's health.
