Pregnancy: How Can You Tell You're Pregnant While Taking the Pill?
Q.
If you were to become pregnant while on the Pill, how could you tell? What damage could occur from taking the Pill while you're pregnant?
A.
A woman who conceives while taking the pill will miss an expected period in most cases. She may also experience early pregnancy symptoms such as nausea and breast tenderness. She may urinate more often than usual or become constipated. If you have any suspicion that you may be pregnant, you can use an over-the-counter pregnancy test; these are very accurate and may detect pregnancy as early as the first day a period is late. The pill, if taken correctly -- every day at roughly the same time every day -- is over 97 percent effective. If a woman does become pregnant on the pill, the chance of harm to the baby is extremely low. There is a very small (0.3 percent) risk of masculinization of a female fetus by prolonged exposure to birth control pills during pregnancy (more than two or three months). There is no increase in other birth defects from pill exposure in pregnancy.
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