Study on the effect of prolonged use of oral contraceptives on serum lipid profile in healthy yoting women

Abstract

A study was undertaken Lo determine the effect o f prolonged use o f oral
contraceptives (OCs) on serum lipid profile in healthy young women. Sixty subjects
were selected. Out o f them, thirty served as control and the rest were as
experimental subject. The age range o f the volunteers was 20 to 35 years and the
duration o f pill use was 3 to 5 years uninterruptedly. The mean (±SE) total
cholesterol (TC) level of the control and experimental groups were 153 (±3.87) and
169 (±4.13) respectively and the mean (±SE) triglyceride (TG) levels were 76 (±5.13)
and 141 (± 8.85) respectively. Levels of total cholesterol and triglyceride were
significantly higher in contraceptive user than those in the control. LDL-cholesterol
level was also significantly higher in OC user compared to non-user control
subjects. It was concluded that OCs elevated both serum cholesterol and triglyceride
levels and are not beneficial for health.