foodconsumer.org: Birth control pill prevents pregnancy five days after sex

Birth control pill prevents pregnancy five days after sex
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admin on 01/29/2010 19:41:00
 
It would be a big turn-off for many love-makers who do not want a baby when they
rush to the bedroom only to find that they don't have any birth control with
them.
Some hormone-based emergency contraceptives, which prevent pregnancy by stopping
an egg from being released or fertilized THREE days after sexual intercourse,
are available by prescription.
Now Scottish researchers declared that they have found a chemical known as
ulipristal acetate that can prevent pregnancy FIVE days after sex, BBC news
reports.
The researchers tested ulipristal against levonorgestrel, which works three days
after sexual activity, in 1,600 women from the UK, Ireland and the US.
Of women assigned levonorgestrel, 2.6 percent ended up becoming pregnant despite
taking the birth control compared to 1.8 percent of women given ulipristal.
In a subgroup of women who received emergency contraceptives more than three
days after sexual intercourse, none of those receiving ulipristal became
pregnant while three of those taking levonorgestrel did.
By Jimmy Downs