Tenille C. Taggart

Taking birth-control pills might have broad, unintended and even surprising side effects Credit: Getty Images Growing up with three older sisters who were more than ten years older than me, I became fascinated with the connection I saw between women’s hormones and their mood. One of my sisters had such severe mood swings around her period that just asking her where she wanted to eat could send her into a hurling spiral of anger and meanness.

Introduction Hormonal contraceptives are the most common contraceptive method in the Western world (Johnson et al., 2013, United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs,).

Introduction Most women on combined oral contraceptives (COC) are satisfied with their contraceptive method (Skouby, 2010). However, 4–10% of COC users experience mood side effects, which typically include depressive symptoms, irritability, and mood swings (Ernst et al., 2002, Kelly et al., 2010).