Carbohydrate metabolism prospectively studied in women using a low-estrogen oral contraceptive for six months

Twenty-four women were prospectively evaluated for their carbohydrate metabolic status before and after six months of using an oral contraceptive containing 0.035 mg ethinyl estradiol and 0.4 mg of norethindrone. At each testing, a 100-gm oral glucose load was administered and blood glucose and plasma insulin values were measured over a three-hour period. Nineteen women with "normal" control tests demonstrated a significant decrease in their fasting glucose values and two of these women (10.5%) had a slight deterioration of their glucose curves. There were no other significant glucose or insulin changes. They had no change in weight and there was a significant reduction in their blood pressure during the treatment time. Five women had "borderline abnormal" control glucose tests, and four of these (80%) improved during the six months of treatment, and two of them (40%) became "normal." Thus, there is no evidence of an adverse effect of this low-estrogen oral contraceptive on carbohydrate metabolism during six months of therapy.