It is common that the use of contraceptive tablets literally stops the woman’s reproductive system - at this time the body does not consume eggs and due to this the reproductive age is extended. We decided to check if such a judgment is justified.

Countsthat when taking hormonal contraception ovary women literally Resting, which means they can fulfill Your functions are longer. Medical Clinicsspecializing in treatment Infertility and female health, write on their sites that oral contraceptives (OK) Save Eggs, thereby prolonging the reproductive age of a woman. Doctors Reportthat "it was an active technique that has led to the fact that over the past 20 years the average age of menopause in women from 45 years has increased to 55 years." Among the advice published in the media, how to delay the menopause, also Mentioned Reception of OK, since they "prevent the maturation of eggs, thereby preserving the ovarian reserve."

Menopause, or menopause, is natural stage The life cycle of a woman, with the onset of which the reproductive age ends. This period Determined Like one year after the last menstruation. According to WHO statistics, the age of the onset of natural menopause is usually from 45 to 55 years. However, in some women this stage Maybe To begin earlier, including in the region of 30 years, due to hereditary factors, as well as chromosomal diseases. Also, the premature onset of menopause occurs after the removal of the ovaries and/or uterus, chemotherapy or radiation therapy of the pelvic organs for cancer.

Natural menopause ArrivesWhen, with age, the ovarian response to hormones weakens and their follicular function fades away, that is, they stop releasing the eggs. In this case, all eggs laid Even before birth: by the fifth month of a female fruit, about 7 million eggs have, by the time of birth they remain 1-2 million, and by the time of puberty - only 300 thousand. However, there are more than enough of them - over the entire period of fertility in a woman, only about 400 eggs ripen, while 30–35 inconsistencied Dying daily.

Inexplicable germ cells gradually degenerate, the pace of their degradation Accelerates 10-15 years before menopause, and during the year after the last menstruation, all the remaining cells pass this process. In other words, no matter how many of them in reserve at this point, they cannot delay the onset of menopause. Therefore, trying to keep the eggs by taking OK is pointless.

Moreover, such pills are unable to do this. Before ripening, the egg located In a sleeping state inside the follicle - a kind of “house” on the surface of the ovary. Each cycle at once several follicles increase in size and begin to prepare for the output of the egg. Under the influence of the follicle -stimulating hormone, which is produced in the pituitary gland, they develop, and then one takes on the role of dominant and, achieving the overwest stage, releases the egg. The remaining follicles at the same time degenerate and destroy along with eggs contained in them. OK do not extend the sleeping state of the follicle, even when taking pills they develop And Dying. Instead, under the influence of synthetic hormones contained in the preparations, they either penetrate sperm into the uterus difficult, thickening cervical mucus, or prevent the output from the follicle. There are also contraceptives that combine both of these mechanisms in their action.

At the same time, the reception of OK stabilizes the cycle, and therefore the woman uses them Maybe Do not notice one of the first signs of menopause is the irregularity of menstruation. Moreover, when taking such tablets of bleeding, it can continue after the onset of menopause (diagnosed in this case by blood test), since synthetic hormones are still entered the body. Therefore, a woman may have the feeling that the menopax period began later or has not yet occurred. In addition Maybe To reduce the severity of the symptoms accompanying this stage, such as ebbs (sensation of severe heat) and night sweating, which also masks the onset of menopause.

Thus, the OK reception does not save the eggs, they, together with the follicles containing them, are spent at a normal pace, simply without leaving the follicle itself, which makes conception impossible. Moreover, the surviving eggs themselves do not stop the menopause, this process depends on the sensitivity of the ovaries to hormones. During the period of menopause, women come in with the still preserved segment of eggs, which degenerate and die after the menstrual cycle stopped. However, taking hormonal contraception reduces symptoms of menopause, so women may have the impression that it came later.

Image on the cover: Northeast Now