Women’s fear-regulating brain regions may be impacted by contraceptive pills

Worldwide, more than 150 million women use oral contraceptives. Combination OCs (COCs), which are constructed of artificial hormones, are the most common kind. It has been shown that the brain network involved in processing fear is influenced by sex hormones.
The long-term effects of COC usage as well as the impact of synthetic and naturally occurring sex hormones on fear-related brain regions—the neural circuitry in the brain that processes fear—have recently been investigated by a team of Canadian researchers.

The primary author of the study, published in Frontiers in Endocrinology, Alexandra Brouillard, is a researcher at Universite du Quebec in Montreal. “In our study, we show that healthy women currently using COCs had a thinner ventromedial prefrontal cortex than men,” Brouillard stated.

It is believed that this area of the prefrontal cortex maintains emotion control, e.g., lowering fear signals while in a safe environment. Our findings might point to a mechanism by which COCs could affect women’s ability to regulate their emotions.”

“When prescribed COCs, girls and women are informed of various physical side effects, for example, that the hormones they will be taking will abolish their menstrual cycle and prevent ovulation,” Brouillard said. Nevertheless, there is little discussion of how sex hormones affect brain development, which lasts into early adulthood. The researchers noted that given the prevalence of COC usage, it is critical to comprehend the immediate and long-term impacts of this drug on brain structure and emotional regulation.

The researchers enlisted males, women who had never used hormonal contraception, women who had used COCs but had stopped using them at the time of the study, and women who were presently taking COCs.

Since it is generally known that women are more likely than males to experience anxiety and stress-related problems, comparing these groups enabled the researchers to look for sex differences as well as potential links between COC usage and short- or long-term morphologic abnormalities.

“As we report reduced cortical thickness of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex in COC users compared to men, our result suggests that COCs may confer a risk factor for emotion regulation deficits during their current use,” Brouillard said.

However, if use of COCs is stopped, the effects could be reversed, according to the study. The results did not support the long-term anatomical consequences of COC usage since the vmPFC impact identified in current users was not evident in previous users. The researchers concluded that further study would be required to corroborate this.

Regarding the effects of COC usage on women’s brains, there is still a great deal to discover. For instance, in order to learn more about the possible long-term impacts of COCs, Brouillard and colleagues are now examining the influence of age of commencement and length of usage. User age may significantly affect reversibility since many young females begin taking COCs throughout adolescence, a critical time in brain development.

The researchers noted many limitations in their work, including the inability to infer a direct association between COC usage and brain morphology and the potential difficulty of extrapolating their findings to a broader population. Additionally, the researchers issued a warning, saying that it is currently impossible to extrapolate anatomical results to behavioral and psychological effects.

“While our investigation does not aim to discourage the use of COCs, it is crucial to understand that the medication may have an impact on the brain. In addition to raising awareness regarding the relatively unknown relationship between early COC prescription and brain development, our goal is to stimulate research interest in women’s health,” Brouillard said.