Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsHow Diarrhea Affects the PillRecommendationsAlternative MethodsWhen to Call a Healthcare Provider
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
How Diarrhea Affects the Pill
Recommendations
Alternative Methods
When to Call a Healthcare Provider
Diarrhea can makebirth control pillsless effective. If you use oral birth control, even one episode ofdiarrheacan slightly increase your risk of becoming pregnant.
This article explains how diarrhea can negatively affect birth control. It discusses when you should use backup contraception and what birth control options are available.
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How Diarrhea Interferes With the Pill
Each pill takes two to three hours to be fully absorbed.The active ingredients in the pill work over the course of yourmenstrual cycle. Their effectiveness depends on taking them on a regular basis. When you miss a dose or two, you may ovulate and become pregnant.
Diarrhea affects how well your body absorbs foods, liquids, and medications. Instead of being taken up into the bloodstream, they are lost in the stool.
If the active ingredients in your birth control pills aren’t absorbed through your intestines, they won’t do the job they were designed to do.
Diarrhea and Birth Control Recommendations
The pill may no longer protect against pregnancy if you have severe diarrhea or diarrhea for more than 48 hours. Severe diarrhea means you pass six to eight watery stools in a 24-hour period.
The following Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations pertain to combination pills (containing estrogen and progestin) only.
Chronic Diarrhea and the Pill
Illnesses that cause chronic, repeated bouts of diarrhea can make oral birth control a problem. The most common conditions that causechronic diarrheainclude:
In addition, chronic diarrhea can come and go. It can recur for months, resolve for a period of time, then return. If you develop chronic diarrhea after reliably using birth control pills for a while, talk to your doctor.
It is commonly recommended that women who live with chronic diarrhea use birth control methods other than the pill.
Alternative Methods of Birth Control
The vaginal ring, for example, provides the same hormones as the pill. The difference is that the hormones are absorbed through the vaginal wall.
If your diarrhea continues for more than 48 hours, you may not be protected against pregnancy. Use a backup birth control method like a condom or diaphragm.
If you rely on oral contraception for birth control and have diarrhea, call your healthcare provider. Their advice will be based on:
Your healthcare provider will probably tell you to finish your current pill pack to keep your menstrual cycle on schedule. You may also need to use a different method of birth control until you finish a week of hormone pills or have your period.
Summary
If you take oral contraceptives, be aware that having diarrhea can change their effectiveness. Diarrhea can impact the pill if you have severe diarrhea or diarrhea that lasts for more than 48 hours.
Women with chronic conditions that cause frequent diarrhea may want to consider a different birth control method, such as a vaginal ring or IUD.
5 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Nebraska Medicine, University Health Center.You asked, we answered: How effective are birth control and condoms?National Health Service UK.What if I’m on the pill and I’m sick or have diarrhoea?Bonthala N, Kane S.Updates on women’s health issues in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.Curr Treat Options Gastroenterol. 2018 Mar;16(1):86-100. doi:10.1007/s11938-018-0172-4Ostrowska L, Lech M, Stefańska E, Jastrzębska-Mierzyńska M, Smarkusz J.The use of contraception for patients after bariatric surgery.Ginekol Pol. 2016;87(8):591-3. doi:10.5603/GP.2016.0050Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.CDC contraceptive guidance for health care providers.
5 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Nebraska Medicine, University Health Center.You asked, we answered: How effective are birth control and condoms?National Health Service UK.What if I’m on the pill and I’m sick or have diarrhoea?Bonthala N, Kane S.Updates on women’s health issues in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.Curr Treat Options Gastroenterol. 2018 Mar;16(1):86-100. doi:10.1007/s11938-018-0172-4Ostrowska L, Lech M, Stefańska E, Jastrzębska-Mierzyńska M, Smarkusz J.The use of contraception for patients after bariatric surgery.Ginekol Pol. 2016;87(8):591-3. doi:10.5603/GP.2016.0050Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.CDC contraceptive guidance for health care providers.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Nebraska Medicine, University Health Center.You asked, we answered: How effective are birth control and condoms?National Health Service UK.What if I’m on the pill and I’m sick or have diarrhoea?Bonthala N, Kane S.Updates on women’s health issues in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.Curr Treat Options Gastroenterol. 2018 Mar;16(1):86-100. doi:10.1007/s11938-018-0172-4Ostrowska L, Lech M, Stefańska E, Jastrzębska-Mierzyńska M, Smarkusz J.The use of contraception for patients after bariatric surgery.Ginekol Pol. 2016;87(8):591-3. doi:10.5603/GP.2016.0050Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.CDC contraceptive guidance for health care providers.
Nebraska Medicine, University Health Center.You asked, we answered: How effective are birth control and condoms?
National Health Service UK.What if I’m on the pill and I’m sick or have diarrhoea?
Bonthala N, Kane S.Updates on women’s health issues in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.Curr Treat Options Gastroenterol. 2018 Mar;16(1):86-100. doi:10.1007/s11938-018-0172-4
Ostrowska L, Lech M, Stefańska E, Jastrzębska-Mierzyńska M, Smarkusz J.The use of contraception for patients after bariatric surgery.Ginekol Pol. 2016;87(8):591-3. doi:10.5603/GP.2016.0050
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.CDC contraceptive guidance for health care providers.
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