Contraceptive pill pushback: ‘I think the demonising has gone too far'
While writing her latest book, Not Just a Period, Dr Hazel Wallace, a former NHS doctor and health influencer, says she 'stumbled across a dark corner of social media' where 'widely exaggerated' claims were being made about the combined oral contraceptive pill, more commonly known as 'the pill'.
In this dark corner, Wallace noticed creators talking about how the pill was damaging women's bodies, causing infertility and other 'often incorrect claims'. It's an online movement that, she says, has led to the pill 'currently going through a bit of a rough patch in terms of its public image'.
This move away from the pill isn't all too surprising for Wallace, given the 'huge gap' in research around female health. This knowledge gap, she says, causes women to turn to 'social media for answers because they're not getting the answers from their own doctors or health professionals'.
What she's noticed instead is a 'big drive to go back to natural', because of something called 'hormonal phobia', which she explains is an 'irrational fear of artificial hormones ... We see that with lots of other kinds of medications and medical interventions, that people feel like big pharma is out to get them,' she says.
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'Menstrual health affects everything - our work, our relationships, our mental health. Yet it's still whispered about'
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As a medical professional, she falls somewhere in the middle of the debate. 'I'm not saying the pill is amazing, but I'm not saying it's terrible either. I think women need to have all the information. You don't really get all that information in 10 minutes with your doctor.'
'You get the top-line risks, but you don't get all of the risks. For some women, certain forms of contraception can cause less-spoken-about effects like maybe a change in libido or change in mental health ... but some pills are really transformative for women. They allow them to work when they've got really painful periods, they help with their acne. So I think the demonising has maybe gone too far.'
In this wide-ranging discussion, Wallace also talks about why periods are still so poorly understood, the benefits of tracking each phase of your cycle and when to seek advice from your doctor.
She also discusses her own experience with polycystic ovary syndrome, her decision to freeze her eggs, and why she left the NHS to focus on nutrition and female health.
You can listen back in the player above or wherever you get your podcasts.
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