Does birth control really lead to infertility

Question

While conspiracies that being on the pill long term can lead to infertility have been swirling around. Doctors have stated that this is in fact false. Saying that the pill can actually be protective by suppressing certain issues like endometriosis or balancing out hormones.

Comments

According to Healthline.com, birth control doesn't cause infertility, as fertility typically returns shortly after stopping use. The use of birth control and infertility are two different stages in the conceiving/protecting portions of a woman's health as well as the fetus. You've done a great job selecting this important topic, as it helps dispel common myths and provides clarity on reproductive health. Well done!

Answer 1

According to clevlandclinic.org, Dr.Cremer explains, “But hormonal birth control does not affect your fertility.” He says this after evaluating and asking many patients about certain symptoms or affects they may have. He does also mention although Birth Control may not lead into fertility, it can affect your fertility but hiding other kinds of issues as far as irregular periods and symptoms of PCOS and endometriosis while on Birth control prior to already having it. 

Does Birth Control Impact Your Fertility? (clevelandclinic.org)

Comments

I think there’s a bit of confusion here in how Dr. Cremer's statement is framed. Saying hormonal birth control "does not affect your fertility" can easily be misunderstood as birth control having no long-term consequences, but what Dr. Cremer seems to be highlighting is that birth control doesn’t cause infertility it doesn’t permanently impair the body’s ability to conceive. I enjoyed how you used a very creditable source as Cleveland clinic because they do a lot of solid research regarding health benefits and research.

Answer 2

Birth Control does not lead to infertility, and may have some benefits in preserving Women's hormone cycle's long-term stability. 

“Our study, similar to previous ones, found that fertility is slightly reduced during the first few menstrual cycles after stopping oral contraceptives, but after that, monthly fertility rates are comparable to those of women stopping other methods of contraception.”

"Also, she said, the results suggest that long-term OC use “is not detrimental, and that fertility may actually improve with more years of use.”"

https://www.bu.edu/sph/news/articles/2013/long-term-oral-contraceptive-use-doesnt-hurt-fertility-study-finds/

Answer 3

The claim made my BU School of Public Health that, “Long-term Oral Contraceptive Use Doesn’t Hurt Fertility” is true. The academic journal that this article references, (Oxford Academic) also includes the same claim, along with further information about the study. I was able to find a few other reliable sources such as, Beaufort Memorial Hospital. In this article, OBGYN Dr. Tiffany Bersani explains, “The hormones in the pill only stay in your body a short time, which is why you need to take one every day for the pill to be effective. So once you stop, you should return to your normal cycle, and your ability to get pregnant, within a few months,” says Dr. Tiffany Bersani, an OBGYN with Beaufort Memorial Obstetrics & Gynecology Specialists in Beaufort and Okatie.(https://www.bmhsc.org/blog/does-birth-control-affect-fertility-long-term)

Answer 4

This appears to be a reliable source, coming from the Boston University School of Public Health, a recognized institution for research and education. This article also directly references a study published in the Human Reproduction academic journal, a peer reviewed scientific source published by Oxford University Press. 

I cross-checked this information with a 2020 study by The BMJ, a peer reviewed medical journal published by the British Medical Association. This study surveyed more than 17,000 women trying to conceive by investigating their contraceptive histories. The conclusion of this research found that there are varying delays in reproductivity after stopping the use of contraceptives based on which method, such as the pill, intrauterine devices, depo-provera shot and the implant. The IUD had the shortest delay in returning to full fertility, and the injectable contraceptives took the longest. However, despite the variation in delays, they concluded that none of these long-term methods "appear[ed] to be detrimental to fertility" and the study "indicate[d] little or no lasting effect of long term use of these methods on fecundability." 

https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m3966

Answer 5

According to Elizabeth Hatch, BUSPH professor of epidemiology, studies show that "fertility is slightly reduced during the first few menstrual cycles after stopping oral contraceptives, but after that, monthly fertility rates are comparable to those of women stopping other methods of contraception", confirming the claim that birth control is not directly correlated to infertility. Furthermore, the BU School of Public Health even mentions a study conducted alongside the University of Aarhus in Denmark, which suggests that women using oral contraceptives for longer periods of time, like four or five years, actually had improved chances of fertility compared to women who only used oral contraceptives for a short period of time.

After further research and cross-checking, according to Piedmont Hospital's article, "Do Birth Control Pills Lead to Infertility?", physicians explain that oral contraceptives do not directly cause infertility, and in many cases can even be protective against infertility by battling issues like endometriosis. Additionally, "male factors cause one-third of infertility", so it is unrealistic that oral contraceptives are to blame for infertility when in 20% of cases, "it is both partners" causing the infertility.

https://www.bu.edu/sph/news/articles/2013/long-term-oral-contraceptive-use-doesnt-hurt-fertility-study-finds/

https://www.piedmont.org/living-real-change/do-birth-control-pills-lead-to-infertility-(plus-other-infertility-facts-and-myths)#:~:text=FACT%3A%20Being%20on%20the%20pill,a%20role%20in%20balancing%20hormones.

Answer 6

Birth control does not lead to infertility. The National Library of Medicine states that there is a high rate of women that believe that contraceptives like birth control are leading to infertility when in reality they are not. They claimed that no matter how long someone is on birth control, it does not increase chances of infertility after stopping use of it. An article from healthline talks about how people might think birth control is leading to infertility because they are being tested while using contraceptives. To be considered infertile, you must go a whole year without being able to conceive with no contraceptives. This misconception can be coming from how when coming off birth control there might be a delay of fertility but this doesn't mean you are infertile. Another reason according to the Cleveland Health Clinic that there is a misconception of birth control leading to infertility is because being on birth control might hide other problems that can lead to infertility like endometriosis since birth control can lessen pains from this. Therefore, there is a lot of misconceptions around birth control causing infertility although that is not true.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6055351/

https://www.healthline.com/health/birth-control/can-birth-control-cause-infertility#misconceptions

https://health.clevelandclinic.org/can-birth-control-make-you-infertile

Answer 7

The claim made by the BU School of Public Health that "Long-term Oral Contraceptive Doesn't Hurt Infertility," is a true and reliable source, because it is supported through research and credible medical professionals. The article published by BU references findings that demonstrate that oral contraceptive uses do not affect a woman's ability to concieve or lead to infertility after discontinuing the pill. In fact, the study, published in Oxford Academic, which is heavily referenced throughout the article delves into detailed data showing that woman's chances of getting pregnant return relatively quickly after stopping oral contraceptives. According to Elizabeth Hatch, BUSPH professor of epidemiology, "OC use is not detrimental, and that fertility may actually improve with more years of use," confirming the idea that there are no known long-term negative impacts on fertility 

After further reserach and cross checking, according to Beaufort Memorial "Does Birth Control Affect Fertility and Long-Term?" , Dr Tiffany Bersani, an OBGYN from Beaufort Hospital states "the hormones in the pill only stay in your body a short time, which is why you need to take one every day for the pill to be effective." She further clarifies that once you stop taking the pill, your normal cycle should resume, and your ability to conceive within a few months. 

https://www.bmhsc.org/blog/does-birth-control-affect-fertility-long-term