The effect of oral contraceptive pills (OCP) on body weight: A call for further studies

Abstract

The relationship between oral contraceptives pills (OCP) and body weight gain has long been established and remains one of the major setback of OCP. This study therefore, was designed to establish the effect of OCP in rabbits. It was a six weeks study involving 15 female rabbits that were divided into three groups (A, B, and C). Group A served as the control, while B and C served as the test groups involving rabbits with lower and higher weights  respectively. Weight changes were determined in three phases: during 2 weeks of acclimatization; during 2 weeks post acclimatization (without OCP administration); and during 4 weeks post acclimatization (with OCP administration in the last 2 weeks). Throughout the period of the study, water, rabbit feed and grasses were given ad libitum. The results showed weight gain after acclimatization and after the next 2 weeks without OCP administration in all the groups. However, during OCP administration, weight gain (+0.06kg) was observed in group A, but weight loss (-0.06kg) in group C, while no weight change was observed in group B. The results of this study suggest therefore, that there is a need for further studies particularly on the dosing pattern of OCP.

Keywords: Oral contraceptive pill, Weight, Female, Rabbits.