Effects If You Take Birth Control While Pregnant
Many women have heard the warning to immediately stop taking birth control if they find out they are pregnant. Some women worry about the hormones in birth control affecting their unborn child if surprises occur.
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Accidents
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It is very common for women to become pregnant while on birth control and not realize until a month or so later. This type of mistake is not harmful since fetal exposure to the hormones is quite limited, according to MayoClinic.com.
Estrogen
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A type of synthetic estrogen, diethylstilbestrol, has been linked to cancer in the past. Since birth control pills contain estrogen, fetal exposure should be limited.
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Hormonal Birth Control
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Although there is no concrete evidence that taking birth control while pregnant causes any birth defects, doctors still advise women to quit taking it immediately after finding out they are pregnant.
Emergency Contraception
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Some birth control pills can be used as emergency contraception if taken in larger doses. Doctors can prescribe the dose, but this is only used to prevent pregnancy, not terminate it. According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, emergency contraception will not harm a woman or her fetus if taken during pregnancy; however, do not take emergency contraception pills if you know you are pregnant.
Birth Control Failure
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Hormonal birth control effectiveness decreases if days or doses are missed or if it is not taken at the same time each day or week. This could cause a pregnancy while on birth control.
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References
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Trey Matula
