New birth control pill to launch in NZ

New Zealand women will soon have access to one of the world’s most popular brands of birth control pill.

The combined oral contraceptive Yasmin is to be launched in New Zealand on Monday, April 18.

Heralded around the world as ‘the pill reinvented,’ Yasmin is the only contraceptive pill with Drospirenone which is as close to natural progesterone as you can get. So there may be some welcome advantages for women.

Studies show Yasmin may help guard against a number of common complaints including:

Water retention related bloating or swelling

Greasy skin, hair and acne

Weight gain related to water retention

Schering NZ Limited says Yasmin is available in more than 75 countries worldwide. It is the market leader in the United States , Australia and many European countries. In 2004 Yasmin was the fastest growing oral contraceptive on the worldwide market.

Group Product manager Tina McCullough says the low dose pill will provide New Zealand women with an important new option in contraception.

“Research shows many women stop using oral contraceptives because of side effects including water retention related swelling, bloating and weight gain within the first twelve months” she says.

“Yasmin can address many of these shortcomings by the actions of the progestogen - Drospirenone. Drospirenone is as close to natural progesterone as you can get, and this may help guard against some of the oral contraceptive side effects such as fluid retention and bloating.”

Skin problems are common to many women. But overseas studies show Yasmin reduces the impact of hormones linked with acne and oily hair.

Like other combination birth control pills, YASMIN is more than 99% effective. Using Yasmin can also result in lighter, shorter and less painful periods.

Christchurch Gynaecologist Mike East has been treating patients with Yasmin for the past 12 months. Aware of the pill’s overseas success, Mr East sought and gained special approval to make Yasmin available to his patients.

Mr East commented that “common complaints with conventional oral contraceptives are weight gain, mood swings, breast tenderness etc. Yasmin tends to favourably affect such problems. Yasmin can help with cyclical mood disorder, teenage and young adult acne, and excessive body hair growth”.

About Drospirenone

Over the last 40 years the pill has had many developments and improvements that have helped the safety profile and reliability as well as provided more choice for women. In recent years, scientists have been able to focus on other aspects of the pill’s performance such as the effect it has on a woman’s quality of life.

One of the most recent developments is Drospirenone - a synthetic hormone that more closely resembles progesterone, the hormone produced naturally by a women’s body, than any other currently used in the contraceptive pill. As a result, Yasmin has negligible effects on weight and women may see an improvement in acne and a reduction in greasiness of their skin and hair.

Drospirenone and Yasmin are developments of Schering AG, the company that brought the first Oral Contraceptive to the New Zealand market. Schering AG is a research company and the worldwide leader in Fertility Control.

What does Yasmin cost?

Yasmin is new to New Zealand and does not have government funding. Consumers can expect to pay around $20 per month.

Additional reading:

“Schering AG Storms Birth Control Market” (Forbes.com, 2003)

http://www.forbes.com/2003/07/11/cx_ad_0710shr.html

“Unique hormone provides relief for women with severe PMS” (UCLA, 2001)

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2001-08/pn-nss082201.php