Birth control increases incidence of depression by 130% in young girls

[Mauritio]

Birth control is linked to incerased rates of depression. In this review they found a huge increase in depressive symptoms during the first two years of taking birth control. Now in adults the depression rates lessened after about two years of taking BC, however in girls that started taking it during puberty it did not, even when they were stopping the pill.

"According to the study, women who began to use contraceptive pills as teenagers had a 130 per cent higher incidence of symptoms of depression, while the corresponding increase among adult users was 92 per cent."

"However, teenage users of contraceptive pills still had an increased incidence of depression even after stopping using the pill, which was not observed in adult users of contraceptive pills."
- New study links contraceptive pills and depression


I guess when the brain is still deveolping, estrogen's effect on it are even more harmfull.
I posted a study a few years ago that shows exactly that, namely that birth introl decreases brain size,which is linked to higher chances of depressive symptoms.
"We found a dramatic difference in the size of the brain structures between women who were taking oral contraceptives and those who were not,..."

"...smaller hypothalamic volume was also associated with greater anger and showed a strong correlation with depressive symptoms..."

- Birth Control Shrinks The Brain !

 

[Old Irenaeus]

Depression doesn't seem surprising. Shrinking the brain, though...

 

[Mauritio]

Depression doesn't seem surprising. Shrinking the brain, though...

I wonder if that's reversible for most people ?
I guess yes and no.

On the one hand the brain is ever growing and restructuring and peat said that the brain ages several years in a short amount of time after the end of a pregnancy because of a lack of progesterone and that that aging is recovered if progesterone levels recover as well.

On the other hand if the girls started bc as a teenager the effects on depression did not fully reverse even after they had stoped the pill , so that looks like some permanent damage was done.

 

[Peachy]

I wonder if that's reversible for most people ?
I guess yes and no.

On the one hand the brain is ever growing and restructuring and peat said that the brain ages several years in a short amount of time after the end of a pregnancy because of a lack of progesterone and that that aging is recovered if progesterone levels recover as well.

On the other hand if the girls started bc as a teenager the effects on depression did not fully reverse even after they had stoped the pill , so that looks like some permanent damage was done.

It influences thought patterns and decision making at that very vulnerable, pivotal age. And relationship dynamics (since it’s often started with the first serious relationship). Maybe the patterns are why the depression continues.

 

[Mauritio]

It influences thought patterns and decision making at that very vulnerable, pivotal age. And relationship dynamics (since it’s often started with the first serious relationship). Maybe the patterns are why the depression continues.

Yeah very possible.
It also makes woman choose a more estrogenic man, while they're on BC . And once they want to get pregnant and gett off of it, they're wondering why they're not attracted to him anymore. Probably destroyed countless family units without anybody knowing.

 

[Mauritio]

The progestins in the birth control pill cannot convert to allopregnanolone, as opposed to regular progesterone.
So when taking BC, you have situation where you suppress your own progesterone poduction and substitue it with a hormone that cant convert progsterones important metabolites like 5aDHP and allopregnanolone.

Many, if not most, of progesterone's anti-depression and anti-anxiety effects are due to its conversion to allopregnanolone (and 5aDHP). So its not suprising that women on BC experience depression and anxiety.
The need of bioidentical progesterone (and its metabolites) was shown in this study, which Ray cited in one of his newsletters:

"Neither wildtype, nor 5α-RKO, mice had increased exploration, anti-anxiety or pro-social behavior with MPA [=progestin from BC] administration.
Progesterone only exerted effects on anti-anxiety behavior, and increased 3α,5α-THP [allopregnanolone] in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus, when administered to wildtype mice. 3α,5α-THP to both WT and 5α-RKO mice increased exploration, anti-anxiety and social interaction and 3α,5α-THP levels in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex. Thus, metabolism of P4 by the 5α-reductase enzyme may be essential for enhancement of these behaviors."

- Progesterone facilitates exploration, affective and social behaviors among wildtype, but not 5α-reductase Type 1 mutant, mice - PubMed

- Medroxyprogesterone acetate - Wikipedia