Can Birth Control Pills Affect Cholesterol Levels?

Studies have shown that birth control pills can affect cholesterol levels. The degree by which your cholesterol level could be affected will be determined by a number of factors, including what type of pill you're taking and how much estrogen or progestin (progesterone) it contains.

Estrogen causes an increase in HDL ("good") cholesterol, a decrease in LDL ("bad") cholesterol and an increase in total cholesterol and tryglyceride levels. Progestin has the opposite effect - so the overall level change will be determined by the ratio of estrogen to progestin.

However, these changes are not considered to be significant and should not affect overall health.