There’s new research to suggest that the birth control pill can protect female athletes from ACL tears which is one of the most common knee injuries. While this may sound far-fetched, the science behind it is very interesting.
The ACL connects your thigh bone to your shin bone. It provides stability when you move sideways and makes sure that the shin bone can’t come too far forward. ACL tears are pretty common with an estimated 100,000—200,000 incidents each year in this country. This injury can be very painful and damage other structures in the knee. ACL tears cannot heal on their own; you can live with a minor tear, but more severe tears require surgery.
What’s really interesting is that until age 15 or 16, the number of ACL tears for males and females is similar, but then there’s a spike for females.
Scientists at Cedar Sinai’s Center for Research in Women’s Health and Sex Differences (CREWHS) hypothesized that a hormone called relaxin might be the reason. Relaxin is produced by the ovaries and by the placenta during pregnancy. Relaxin loosens your muscles, joints, and ligaments. This happens during pregnancy to help the pelvis stretch during delivery.
Relaxin is also released in the second half the menstrual cycle, after ovulation. By suppressing ovulation, the birth control pill also keeps relaxin levels low.
To determine whether low relaxin levels impacted women, the researcher recruited 72 high-level collegiate athletes. About half of them (32) were on the pill. Researchers collected blood to measure hormone levels, and tested looseness of the athletes’ ligaments by taking them through a series of physical activities. They specifically tested sideways joint movement which increases the risk of ACL injury.
They found that the athletes who were not taking the pill had different hip and knee movement during the second half of their menstrual cycle when relaxin levels are higher. This didn’t happen to the women on birth control who were able to land a jump with their hips straighter and more parallel.
They also found that the women who had lower relaxin levels because of the pill had fewer ankle sprains, ankle strains, meniscal tears, and knee hyperextensions during the study.
These finding suggest that hormonal birth control can be protective against injury for female athletes. Of course, the authors note that most research on athletes is done on men so there is a lot we still don’t know.
About 1.6 million cases of chlamydia and 600,000 cases of gonorrhea are diagnosed in the United Sates each year. A new study suggests that these patients may not be following through with STI treatment or getting the right antibiotics.
A clinical trial of a new antibiotic found that it works just as well as a current drug regimen for treating gonorrhea infections. This is important because the bacteria that causes gonorrhea has become resistant to most existing antibiotics.
You have probably heard that HPV can cause cervical cancer. But did you know that it can also cause cancers of the mouth, tongue, and throat?
The FDA just approved a new, fully at-home test for chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomoniasis. The tests, which is only for women, will be available without a prescription. Users can collect their own sample and have results in less than 30 minutes.
A new study of more than 200,000 women found that women who had ever taken the pill had a 26% lower risk of ovarian cancer.
Does your child feel it’s okay to talk with you about sex and sexual health? If not, have you thought about who will answer your child’s questions? Only you can tell your child that it’s okay to ask you questions. You want to become askable!
Many methods of birth control that are available today rely on hormones like those that our bodies make naturally. Hormonal methods come in many different forms—from pills to patches to shots—but all of them essentially work the same way.
Our reproductive health is an important part of our sexual health and our overall health. It includes our reproductive organs and our ability to get pregnant or get someone pregnant when we choose.
ASHA believes that all people have the right to the information and services that will help them to have optimum sexual health. We envision a time when stigma is no longer associated with sexual health and our nation is united in its belief that sexuality is a normal, healthy, and positive aspect of human life.
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