Posted on 12/21/2005 5:30:14 PM PST by wagglebee
December 21, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Women are suing the makers of Depo-Provera birth control, saying it has caused them severe bone loss leading to osteoporosis.
A $700-million class-action lawsuit has been filed against the drug company Pfizer, an international pharmaceutical conglomerate that also produces the prescription drugs Viagra, Zoloft and Celebrex. Pfizer has come under fire in the past for alleged lethal side effects stemming from the use of the anti-depressant Zoloft, and the company currently faces a number of lawsuits in the U.S. over Celebrex, which is alleged to cause heart attacks in users.
The drug Depo-Provera acts as an abortifacient. Given by injections four times a year, the artificial hormone prevents a baby in the earliest stages of development from implanting on the wall of the uterus, leading to its death. The drug is effective in ending pregnancies more than 99% of the time, according to Pfizer’s website. Advertisers have acclaimed it as a “hassle and worry free” birth control method, saving women from daily pill popping.
Concerns that the drug also causes massive and partially irreversible bone loss in young women have led to three current lawsuits under way in Canada.
The drug has also been linked to increased susceptibility to STD’s in users, as much as three times higher than normal, according to one study.
Depo-Provera has been at the forefront of foreign-funded birth control programs in the developing world. Between 1994-2000, USAID sent over 40 million units of the drug to these programs, much of it going to Africa. Proponents of the medication have been accused of contributing to the spread of HIV in Africa by weakening women’s immune systems through use of the drug.
See LifeSiteNews coverage at:
‘Family Planning’ Groups Spreading AIDS in Africa with Depo Provera, New Study Warns
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2004/sep/04090803.html
Information, yes. Misinformation, no. Adding the politically/religiously motivated lies of outfits like LifeSite, to the drug companies' profit-motivated exaggerations of benefits and minimization of negative side effects, is just increasing the misinformation load.
What you say is scary but true.
That or more babies! He made the choice, which was fine w/me.
Or, we could have meaningful tort reform and keep the high paying R&D jobs in the states. I'd rather *not* pay the greedy lawyers and have the Ph.D. scientists stick around.
I just know that I always have the most negative side effects possible with any medication and am very adamant that all information be given me before hand for any medication. I base my decisions on facts not propoganda from any side. There are long term consequences for interfering with the natural functions of the body. People should have all information so that they can choose what they prefer to live with, what's that saying pay now or pay later.
How many of you guys would be so gung ho about the use of bc pills if you realized that it can and often does kill the libido? Remember the pill is interfering with the hormones.
Libido is not something I regard as a priority, but YMMV. Different people respond very differently to medications, and hopefully, the emerging science of genetic testing to predict response to particular medications will largely solve that problem. I think that dosage recommendations are a big part of the problem. I often take a fraction of the recommended or prescribed dosage of a medication and find that it's plenty. The recommended dosages are designed to achieve maximal effect -- good for sales -- and work fine for people who don't have any adverse reactions, but can make the side effects worse than the original problem. Case in point: I have a 365 day a year runny nose from a wide range of mild allergies. I take 1/4 of an Actifed tablet in the morning and that does the trick for the whole day. Recommended dosage is a whole tablet every 6 hours, but even 1 whole tablet a day gives me kidney stones. But I've been on the 1/4 a day for over 15 years with no problems.
Yes it's a ymmv thing but there is a difference in taking allergy medicines and taking hormone altering drugs. Are we 100% knowledgeable about what functions those hormones are responsible for? I doubt that we know everything there is to know about the human body.
There are other risks not always taken into account, like weight gain and mood swings. Lots of women have gained a lot of weight from taking various forms of bc pills. Others start having problems with depression. The dosage issue is something that is very hard to figure out since not enough of the drug won't stop the ovulation or birth control aspect.
Good heavens what's the number one complaint by most married men in regards to marriage? No sex, weight gain and bitchiness. Maybe there's a real reason that is being overlooked all because of the desire for easy birth control. I'm not even discussing the moral/religious aspect here but simply the physiological reality a lot of women deal with when taking artificial hormones to alter the way their body is supposed to function. When you feel like crap you will act like crap.
Yes, but on the other hand, women who suffer from endometriosis, which is pretty common, nearly always feel much better when taking oral contraceptives. I think a certain amount of experimentation on oneself is a good idea. In the Internet age, it is easy to get a ton of information, both from drug companies and medical researchers, and from online message boards where people with the same problem and/or who have taken the same medication, compare notes. Often negative side effects can be counteracted by adding another medication or even just vitamin/mineral supplements, and it's no longer difficult to get that info, even if your prescribing doctor doesn't have it.
I understand that some women need it for medical reasons. However, the vast majority of women don't. One of the treatments for endometriosis is guess what, pregnancy. For some reason the symptoms go into remission. If a woman has this condition and she does want children she needs to decide early on so that infertility isn't an issue down the road.
Speaking from personal experience of being on the pill for medical reasons the side effects were not worth it. I finally had to take matters in my own hands and found that by making dietary changes and taking supplements alone was the key for correcting the hormone imbalance. I have the internet to thank for being able to find information needed to greatly improve my life without medication. I also discovered that there are many women out there with similar negative experiences regarding taking artificial hormones for birth control.
I have to say that no this drug is NOT safe. I was given the shot and with in 24 hours I had what they thought was a stroke. Turns out that it is nerve damage from the shot. Now no one can tell me that this drug is a safe way to prevent pregnancy.
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