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Morning After

Sometimes the cost of a sense of safety can be more than what it deserves. And that cost can mean risk to life, not only yours but also to the unfortunate fetus.

A NEW race of contraceptive pills has already entered the Philippine market. Scientists consider this as an emergency contraception (EC), although it’s popularly known as the “morning-after pill.”

This oral contraceptive contains four times the normal dose of what most people know of as The Pill, or the combined oral contraceptive (COC) pill. And it is designed to prevent pregnancy after “unprotected” sexual intercourse. This dose must be taken over a period of 12 hours thereafter.

The EC pill, like the COC, prevents ovulation from happening. And like COC, it interferes with implantation if fertilization did happen, according to the Rosenfiend study in 1998. And by that capability it is an abortifacient.

Progestin hormones are the culprits in this mix. Synthetic progestins, whether norethindrone, norethindrone acetate, ethynodiol diacetate, norgestrel, levonorgestrel, desogestrel, gestodene, or norestimate, cause changes in the lining of the uterus, which make it impossible for the fertilized ovum to implant.

Historically, the higher doses of the estrogen and progestin components had been associated with higher risks for... [Read more.]


This article appears in SunStar Cebu newspaper on 17 August 2011. 

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