The study, published in JAMA Psychiatry, found women using hormonal contraception were more likely to develop depression and use antidepressants than nonusers. Specifically, users of combined oral contraceptives increased women’s rate of taking antidepressants by 23 percent, and the rate nearly doubled among teens, according to Kaiser Health News.
Researchers tracked 1,061,997 women using combined data from the National Prescription Register and the Psychiatric Central Research Register in Denmark. They observed participants, ages 15 to 34, at any time from Jan. 1, 2000, to Dec. 31, 2013, and in the previous five-year period. All women with a depression diagnosis or use of antidepressants before Jan. 1, 2000, or before they turned 15 were excluded, as were all women with other major psychiatric diagnoses.
The study found that females ages 15 to 19 taking combined oral contraceptives were diagnosed with depression at a 70 percent higher rate than those not taking the drugs, according to Kaiser Health News. Similarly, the patch and vaginal rings tripled the rate of depression, the publication notes.
However, according to Kaiser Health News, the study also showed the rate of depression dropped dramatically as the women continued using their contraceptives, and that women who begin birth control at an older age also experienced reduced rates of depression.
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