Contraceptive pill may increase Multiple Sclerosis risk

[MSUK]

Taking the contraceptive Pill may increase a woman’s chance of developing multiple sclerosis, researchers warn.

The risk of MS could be up to 50 per cent higher among women on the Pill, according to a new US study.

The findings also show young obese women are at greater risk of the disease, probably because they produce higher levels of a hormone known to regulate appetite..... Read More - http://www.ms-uk.org/hormones

[astral7]

It is because women taking the contraceptive Pill have more sexual intercourse with man.

[Slumby]

I've known for years that, for me, there is a hormonal component as, every month, like clockwork, I feel Grrreat the day before my period starts.

Not sure what exactly is happening with my hormones here...but I wish that I knew.
Maybe estrogen drops, but testosterone does not.

I went on a bcp (at the insistance of my mother) at age 15, and I regret playing with my hormones, esp so young.
Last year--The "mini pill" (progesterone, the "pregnancy hormone") that I went on, to see what happens. MS only got worse.

I do use a bioidentical estradiol cream, it seems to help with mood.
I think it is time to up the dose.

[cheerleader]

Two new studies will be presented at the AAN conference in Philadelphia April 26-May 3, and the press releases are coming out already. One on the connection of obesity to MS susceptability, and one on the connection of birth control pills.

It is scientific fact that obese women and women who take birth control pills have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke and venous thrombosis. And obese women on birth control pills have an even higher risk--due to the increase of hypercoagulating factors in their blood. Both of these factors create endothelial dysfunction. Both of these factors reduce cerebral blood flow.

The associations of obesity with clotting factor levels were studied to investigate possible mechanisms. Obesity (BMI >/=30 kg/m(2)) increased the risk of thrombosis twofold (CI95: 1.5 to 3.4), adjusted for age and sex. Obese individuals had higher levels of factor VIII and factor IX, but not of fibrinogen. The effect on risk of obesity was not changed after adjustment for coagulation factors levels (fibrinogen, F VIII, F IX, D-dimer). The relative risk estimates were similar in different age groups and in both sexes, indicating a larger absolute effect in older age groups.

Evaluation of the combined effect of obesity and oral contraceptive pills among women aged 15-45 revealed that oral contraceptives further increased the effect of obesity on the risk of thrombosis, leading to 10-fold increased risk amongst women with a BMI greater than 25 kg/m(2) who used oral contraceptives. Obesity is a risk factor for deep vein thrombosis. Among women with a BMI greater than 25 kg/m(2) the synergistic effect with oral contraceptives should be considered when prescribing these.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12624633

When we looked at brain volume and gray matter volume specifically, we found that in this cohort of people without comorbid conditons, but with a range of BMI, what we found was increased BMI was related to reduced cortical or gray matter volume, suggestng that there are actual relationships between obesity and structural brain changes. Subsequent findings from other studies that were conducted along the way, just looking strictly at obese populations, indicated relationships between other markers as well. White matter hyperintensities were increased in people with morbid obesity, but even among people who were overweight or mildly obese, there were some relationships between white matter abnormalites. https://psychiatry.ufl.edu/files/2011/1 ... Final_.pdf


Obesity and birth control pills both affect the blood. They increase the risk of clots, due to hypercoagulation. They slow cerebral blood flow and increase white matter abnormalities. This is a vascular connection worth exploring!

to read more:
http://ccsviinms.blogspot.com/2014/03/o ... raise.html

cheer