Current Body Mass Index Is Associated with Reported Weight Gain as a Reason for Discontinuing Oral Contraceptive Pill...

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Health
• Contraception
• Public Health

Background:

• Combined oral contraceptive pills (COCPs) are widely used but associated with concerns about weight gain.
• Perceived weight gain as a reason for discontinuing COCPs may vary by body mass index (BMI).

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate whether the reason for discontinuing COCPs, specifically perceived weight gain, differs across BMI categories.
• To inform contraceptive counseling by understanding weight-related discontinuation patterns.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 2017-2019 National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG) data from 3709 women (aged 20-49) who used COCPs.
• Examination of discontinuation reasons, including weight gain, stratified by BMI (underweight, normal, overweight, obesity).
• Survey-weighted logistic regression adjusted for covariates was used to assess odds of discontinuation due to weight gain.

Main Results:

• Overall, 7.0% of COCP ever-users reported discontinuing due to weight gain.
• Women with overweight (8.4%) and obesity (7.7%) reported weight gain discontinuation more frequently than normal-weight women (5.5%).
• Adjusted analyses showed significantly higher odds of discontinuation due to weight gain for women with overweight (aOR 1.76) and obesity (aOR 1.68).

Conclusions:

• Self-reported weight gain is a significant reason for COCP discontinuation, particularly among women with higher BMIs.
• Contraceptive counseling should proactively address weight-related concerns, especially for overweight and obese individuals.
• These findings underscore the need for personalized contraceptive care considering patient-reported side effects and BMI.