Those who choose to take the hormonal birth control pill know it sometimes feels like Russian roulette when it comes to the side effects. Sometimes, you feel nothing. Other times, you’re bloated and moody and all sorts of messed up. Luckily, a recent study suggests that your sex drive isn’t actually affected by the Pill, despite longtime suspicions.
To be fair, The Cut reports that previous research on the pill and libido has been inconclusive, but a study conducted by researchers at University of Kentucky and Indiana University was published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, and it may have found something interesting.
In an effort to study the effects of various birth control methods on desire in heterosexual relationships, researchers had 900 participants fill out the Sexual Desire Inventory, which measures both solitary and dyadic libido. Additionally, participants listed what type of birth control they used, later grouped into oral contraception, other hormonal contraception, and non-hormonal methods like condoms and the copper IUD.
Contrary to popular belief, those on the Pill had higher a dyadic libido, or desire for sex with their partner, than those using non-hormonal methods. However, when age and relationship length were factored in, this was no longer a solid conclusion. That suggests that the context of a relationship might have more to do with this relationship than the specific type of contraception. Either way, at least in the study, the Pill wasn’t a libido killer.
“We as scientists are beginning to put more pieces together to further understand sexual desire,” Lead author Kristen Mark, Ph.D., M.P.H., told Yahoo Beauty. But for now you can cross this worry (or excuse) off your list.
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