Women Relying on Contraceptive Pills At A Risk Of Developing Crohn's Disease

A researcher at the Harvard University has revealed that women who consume contraceptive and morning-after pills are at a greater risk of developing Crohn's disease wherein the gut of the affected individual becomes weakened.

Crohn's disease is an incurable condition of the human gut where the inner lining to the digestive system gets inflamed and results in symptoms like diarrhoea, fatigue, weight loss and abdominal pain. In severe cases, it might even lead to the presence of blood in the faeces.

The study has successfully tried to link the alarming increase in the cases of Crohn's disease with an increased use of oral contraceptive pills in the last 50 years in the United States.

The research was conducted by Dr Hamed Khallil from the Harvard University. In the study, he studied 230,000 women in the US who were taking the pills for past five years. The study revealed that the risk of Crohn's disease has tripled in women who take the pills. The overall trend showed that the cases of Crohn's disease have risen twice or thrice since oral contraceptive pills have started to become easily available over the counter.

According to Khallil, it is the combination of oral contraceptive pills and genetic susceptibility of an individual to develop Crohn's disease that leads to it, and not just the use of the pills.

“It's an interaction between these two that significantly increases the risk of an individual developing it,” said Khallil, reported Express.

On the other hand, Dr Simon Anderson from London Bridge said, “If you have a family history of Crohn’s, I would advise against starting on the Pill,” reported Express.

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