E-cigarette and hormonal contraception: is there a risk in vaping while taking the pill?
If you use a hormonal contraceptive, you are probably aware that health professionals advise against smoking at the same time. Indeed, smoking and hormonal contraception present risks to your wellbeing.
But what about vaping? According to Tabac Info Service, it is entirely feasible to use an e-cigarette when taking a hormonal contraceptive. Tobacco consumption is discouraged due to the carbon monoxide inhaled.
The e-liquid used in e-cigarettes contains no tar or carbon monoxide, which are responsible for the dangers associated with using the contraceptive pill. In reality, it is better for your health to give up traditional cigarettes in favour of vaping in order to reduce the unwanted effects of contraception.
Contraception and vaping: no proven harmful consequences
Scientific research shows that women who smoke and use the contraceptive pill are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease, thrombosis and cancers.
Scientists from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (United States), an American government agency specializing in prevention, studied the potential impact of vaping on women taking hormonal contraceptives.
Their approach involved analysing the scientific literature to identify cases of female vapers on hormonal contraception suffering from cardiovascular problems. However, the researchers found no evidence of this link. They conclude, in their report, that vaping has no effect on the cardiac health of women taking the pill.
It is important to highlight that studies evaluating the risks of vaping in combination with a hormonal contraceptive are still insufficient. However, it is certain that smoking in women taking the pill is far more harmful than vaping. Switching to the e-cigarette already provides protection against many dangers associated with tobacco.
Essential information on hormonal contraception and the e-cigarette
The hormonal contraceptive pill is intended for women wishing to stop ovulation in order to prevent fertilisation and pregnancy. There are two types of pills: combined (oestro-progestogen) and progestogen-only.
3rd and 4th generation pills contain oestrogens, which have the effect of thickening the blood, just like traditional cigarettes. The combination of the pill and tobacco can therefore increase the risks of cardiovascular accidents and phlebitis.
However, the e-cigarette, being less harmful than tobacco, can help reduce these risks. Although it still contains nicotine, e-liquids are free of carbon monoxide, which helps maintain an adequate oxygen level in the blood.
Ideally, if you use the pill, you should begin a nicotine withdrawal process when you start vaping. Gradually reduce the nicotine concentration until you are using a nicotine-free e-liquid. At this stage of withdrawal, vaping will no longer have any impact on your health.
Overall, the e-cigarette is generally better for your health, especially if you are taking a hormonal contraceptive.
The combination of tobacco toxicity and the side effects of the pill can lead to serious consequences for your health. By choosing vaping, you eliminate the toxicity associated with traditional cigarettes.
Tobacco and the pill: a dangerous combination!
To understand the importance of quitting smoking while taking the pill, it is essential to explain the risks associated with the combination of smoking and the use of a contraceptive.
Smoking and the hormonal contraceptive pill (particularly oestrogen-progestogen pills) increase the risks of:
- Cardiovascular accidents
- Myocardial infarction
- Stroke (cerebrovascular accident)
- Phlebitis (venous thrombosis, pulmonary embolism)
- Circulatory disorders (blocked arteries, blood clots, etc.)
- Cancers (cervical cancer, breast cancer, etc.).
By switching to the e-cigarette, you reduce the harmful effects of smoking on your health. This is due to the absence of inhalation of toxic substances found in traditional cigarettes, such as tar, carbon monoxide and others.
E-liquids contain only propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, flavourings and nicotine, which have no impact on the use of the pill.
Tobacco damages the walls of blood vessels and narrows the arteries, while the pill tends to thicken the blood. In the long term, complications can arise. If you smoke, it is crucial to inform your gynaecologist before they prescribe the pill to you.
Can you smoke while taking the pill?
The medical community's opinion is unequivocal: it is imperative to avoid smoking when taking the pill. Smoking multiplies the risk of cardiovascular accident by 20 to 26. This risk is even higher depending on your age, your state of health and your family history.
Overall, cigarettes cause more than 75,000 deaths in France each year (according to Santé publique France). Quitting smoking is becoming increasingly necessary to preserve your health. The e-cigarette can help you give up tobacco.
Do not hesitate to consult a smoking cessation specialist. The e-cigarette is not a medicine and does not "cure" smoking addiction. However, it is an effective nicotine substitute that has already helped more than 3 million French people break free from their tobacco dependency.
Is it possible to smoke while using a contraceptive implant?
In general, smoking while using hormonal contraception is not recommended. The combination of hormones and tobacco amplifies the risks. It is particularly inadvisable to combine smoking with contraceptives containing oestrogens.
Tobacco does not affect the effectiveness of the implant. However, whether you use an IUD, an implant, a pill or any other contraceptive, you should consider quitting smoking so as not to worsen the intoxication of your body.
Nicotine and the pill: what you need to know
According to Tabac Info Service, nicotine does not have a significant impact on cardiovascular complications. On the contrary, quitting smoking means no longer inhaling toxic substances and therefore preserving the health of the heart and arteries.
So, if you continue to consume nicotine with the e-cigarette, rest assured that this will have no consequences on your health if you are taking the pill. You can quit cigarettes and opt for e-liquids containing nicotine with your e-cigarette.
Start a smoking cessation programme and buy your first e-cigarette kit to begin vaping. Successfully quitting smoking involves a gradual withdrawal, breaking the habit of the smoking gesture, and then nicotine withdrawal.
Nicotine-free e-cigarette and the pill, is there an effect?
The nicotine-free e-cigarette has, in principle, no effect on your health. You can use it alongside a contraceptive pill. In general, vaping with a nicotine-free e-cigarette presents no danger to the vaper.
On the contrary, by eliminating nicotine from your daily routine, you free yourself from the dependency it creates. Moreover, the inhalation of nicotine through vaporisation is far less dangerous than its absorption through tobacco combustion.
The absence of combustion is better for your health. The e-cigarette, for its part, does not burn any product to generate vapour. Instead, it is the heat produced by the coil that causes the vaping liquid to evaporate in the form of a cloud.
Which pill should you choose as a vaper?
Only a doctor or gynaecologist is qualified to prescribe a contraceptive pill. This professional will select the pill suited to your medical history, blood tests and personal situation.
It is certain that the pills to avoid for smokers are those containing oestrogens, also known as combined pills. A female smoker would therefore be better off opting for a progestogen-only pill, although the advice of a healthcare professional is essential.
As the e-cigarette is considered an alternative to cigarettes, the rules applicable to smokers may also apply to vapers. In any case, do not start a contraceptive without first discussing it with your doctor.
If the pill does not suit you, be aware that there are other options such as microdosed pills (without oestrogens), progestogen implants, copper IUDs (without hormones), etc.
What do doctors think about the combination of e-cigarette and pill?
According to Dr Anne Borgne, a smoking cessation specialist and addiction specialist, current scientific and medical data are insufficient to accurately assess the impact of the e-cigarette on the use of a contraceptive pill.
What is certain is that the toxicity of cigarette smoke has real consequences on the health of women taking the pill. Vaping could be a solution to reduce the dangers associated with smoking in combination with a contraceptive.
However, the lack of studies does not allow us to assert that using an e-cigarette in combination with the pill is without risk.
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