London - Taking the Pill does not make you fat, experts declared.
The Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare of the Royal College and Obstetricians and Gynaecologists said women of reproductive age simply tend to gain weight over time – and no type of contraceptives affect this.
The FSRH’s "clinical effectiveness unit" has published research on weight gain among women who use a number of widely-used contraceptives.
A study of 68 women, with 42 taking the Pill and 26 not using any contraception, found that "while users of the Pill may gain some weight during use, there is no evidence that its use causes significant weight gain".
Dr Sarah Hardman, director of the unit, said: "Women gain on average a similar amount of weight over time whether they are using hormonal contraception or not. Average weight gain during use of contraceptive pills, the implant and the hormonal coil is modest and not significantly different to weight gain with no contraception or non-hormonal contraception."
The first contraceptive pills in the 1960s contained more of the hormones oestrogen and progestogen.
High doses of the former can lead to water retention and appetite increase – both of which can lead to weight gain.