Do Birth Control Side Effects Make It Worth Skipping?

Short Wave

NPR

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4.7 • 6.5K Ratings

🗓️ 10 November 2025

⏱️ 13 minutes

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Summary

Recently, health influencers on Instagram and TikTok have been vocal about the side effects of hormonal birth control. Check out the most popular videos on the subject, and you’ll hear horror stories about sex drive and skin texture, depression and weight fluctuation. But doctors say that while some side effects are possible, the most extreme stories are often the rarest cases. And one of the most common side effects of not taking birth control … is unplanned pregnancy.

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0:00.0	Support for NPR and the following message comes from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
0:05.4	RWJF is a national philanthropy working toward a future where health is no longer a privilege but a right.
0:12.1	Learn more at RWJF.org.
0:15.6	You're listening to Shortwave from NPR.
0:20.5	Hey, Shortwaver's Emily Kwong here with Science Desk correspondent Katie Riddle.
0:24.6	Hi.
0:25.2	Hey, Emily.
0:25.9	So I want to talk about a force that's having a pervasive effect on health care right now.
0:30.8	Oh, okay.
0:31.5	I bet you're going to talk about funding cuts.
0:32.9	Nope, it is not funding cuts, also not insurance.
0:35.9	Oh, that was my next guest.
0:37.7	Well, those things are important, too.
0:39.6	But today I want to talk about influencers.
0:42.2	Let's talk about things that were wrecking my hormones.
0:44.4	Supplement I love that you may not know about.
0:46.3	I'm talking about.
0:47.5	I'm talking about a certified holistic health coach.
0:49.6	My second healing, extremely medicinal.
0:51.4	All that good stuff.
0:52.5	So, Emily, these health influencers have especially captured the attention of adults under 35.
0:59.0	According to a global survey from the communications firm Edelman,
	...

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