Yasmina Kattou, edited by Laura Laplaud 07h20, March 23, 2023
According to a new British study published in the journal "PLOS Medicine", all forms of hormonal contraception increase the risk of breast cancer in women, including methods containing only progestin, which are increasingly used. What are the hormone-free alternatives?Pill, IUD, implant or injection... Women using hormonal contraception have an increased risk, about 20 to 30 percent, of developing breast cancer, reveals a British study published in the journal PLOS Medicine. The same applies to methods containing only progestin or oestrogen-progestogen. Faced with this non-negligible risk, what are the hormone-free alternatives?
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Condoms, spermicides, surgery...
Among the alternatives, the most classic is the condom - male or female - which would protect only 85% against an unwanted pregnancy. In question, the misuse or a break of the condom.
Spermicides in gel or cream form can also be a solution. They make it possible to make spermatozoa inactive but the effectiveness leaves something to be desired, warns Isabelle Héron. According to the president of the national federation of medical gynecology colleges, the best contraception without hormones is the copper IUD. "It's a small object that is placed in the uterus that contains copper. It has an action on sperm motility and an inflammatory action in the lining of the uterus that prevents the implantation of an embryo if there is fertilization."
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Some women also use methods to track their cycle, to identify the most fertile periods and avoid intercourse at those times. Surgery can also be used: vasectomy, reversible for men. Women may request tubal ligation. This means of contraception is however definitive.