Question for the Ladies - TOTM-R
bassie
11,710 Posts
I can understand why some women would rather skip their period altogether, but this creeps me out. Kind of like taking an anti-depressant that also stops you from crying. Even at its very worst, I've never wished to get rid of it 'indefinitely', but I think I'm in the minority. There was a news segment on it a while back and woman after woman from teens to full-growns were saying "Yes! Sign me up! This is the greatest thing ever!"Is it too personal to ask if this is something you would consider?____________________________________________Birth-control pill that eliminates women's periods wins FDA approval[/b]WASHINGTON (AP) - The first birth-control pill meant to put a stop to women's monthly periods indefinitely has won federal approval in the United States, the manufacturer said Tuesday.Called Lybrel, it's the first such pill to receive Food and Drug Administration approval for continuous use. When taken daily, the pill can halt women's menstrual periods indefinitely and prevent pregnancies.It's the latest approved oral contraceptive to depart from the 21-days-on, seven-days-off regimen that had been standard since birth-control pill sales began in the 1960s. The Wyeth pill is the first designed to put off periods altogether when taken without break.It's not approved in Canada, says a spokesperson for Health Canada.Wyeth plans to start Lybrel sales in the U.S. in July. The Madison, N.J., company said it hasn't yet determined a price. The pill contains a low dose of two hormones already widely used in birth-control pills, ethinyl estradiol and levonorgestrel.Most of the roughly 12 million U.S. women who take birth-control pills do so to prevent pregnancy. Others rely on hormonal contraceptives to curb acne or regulate their monthly periods.Some nontraditional pills such as Yaz and Loestrin 24 shorten monthly periods to three days or less. Seasonique, an updated version of Seasonale, reduces them to four times a year. With Lybrel, in tests, 59 per cent of women who took the medication had no bleeding after six months.However, 18 per cent of women dropped out of studies because of spotting and breakthrough bleeding, according to Wyeth. That sort of unanticipated and irregular bleeding can be a problem with low-dose pills.Still, a women's health expert said Lybrel would be a welcome addition for the woman who seeks relief from the headaches, tender breasts, cramps and nausea that can accompany monthly periods."Over time she will experience markedly less bleeding episodes or no bleeding episodes. That is very beneficial for some women - and is wanted by some women," said Dr. Vanessa Cullins, vice-president for medical affairs at Planned Parenthood Federation of America Inc.University of New Hampshire sociologist Jean Elson pointed to advantages for what she characterized as a small number of women who suffer extraordinarily during menstruation, but overall she said the pill left her with mixed feelings."For women in that situation, I certainly can understand the benefits of taking these kinds of medications, but for most women menstruation is a normal life event - not a medical condition. Why medicate away a normal life event if we're not sure of the long-term effects?" said Elson, who researches the sociology of gender and medical sociology.In recent years, as the hormone content of birth-control pills has dipped, failure rates have climbed. The FDA is mulling whether to establish an acceptable failure rate for the pills. In January, a panel of agency advisers said less-effective birth-control pills should still merit federal approval if they promise other benefits, including improved safety.Generally, lower-dose birth-control pills can reduce the risk of serious and sometimes deadly side effects, including blood clots and stroke, associated with their use.
Comments
It's funny its called Lybrel. What a joke.
It's hard being a woman.
perfect usage of graemlin award!!!!!!!
The FDA is so quick to approve and then 3-5 years later people are having complications. We have seen so many drugs go on and off the market in the last 10 years. They said Oxycontin wasn't addictive and Vioxx was the greatest thing ever. Its getting pretty scary.
"Hi Becky, you're in a good mood."
"Yeah Trish, that's because I stopped having to deal with my period!"
"Wow, that's amazing!"
"Totally! It's called Lybrel!"
And yeah, the name is TERRIBLE. Someone should be fired.
Seriously though, this just doesn't sound right. I find it hard to believe there are no significant side effects.
holla hollla holla holla !!!
The US needs to approve the hormone combo in Yasmin to be available in a generic (read: MUCH cheaper) form. As far as I know it's really the only pill that squashes all the worst symptoms... assuming that'd be the main reason women would want to rid themselves of menstruation.
But maybe it's just the inconvenience of being "dutty" for a few days? Doesn't seem worth the risk to potentially mess with my fertility, but to each their own.
I imagine them to be something like tampon ads - it's all about freedom doncha know!?
You can wear white capris without any surprises!
Your Spring Break won't be ruined by hot flashes!
Your boyfriend will never have to deal with icky reminders of your womanhood in the trash!
In the interviews I saw, not one of the women said anything about the pain, just the inconvenience. For severe cases, I can understand it, but I still find the idea troubling.
And will there be an age limit to this? Can a girl start her period at 12 only to stop it at 13?
Yes.
I like knowing my gf isn't pregnant without having to take a test.
sayin'.
I think maybe a better drug would be one where men have to suffer through a menstrual cycle every month.
I don't think I would ever take this- something about is just NO, NO, NONONONONONONO. I don't want to fuck w/my biology that bad! Of course, I always wish I had 20/20 eyesight so I can go camping for a few days and not worry about what the hell to do w/my super fussy gas-permeable contact lens every night. I also wish that I can travel to rougher areas w/out having to worry about my period, but at the same time it's not THAAAT bad to have it...
I'm just skeptical...at least for now.
or how about a pill where women have to suffer through hearing about another woman's menstrual cycle every month while they're out busting they ass to earn some g*ddamn loot for the family.
KIDDING.