Most women dream of becoming a mother with a worry free pregnancy. However, it is possible to become pregnant while taking birth control. Although, there can be many reasons, one factor can cause the loss of effectiveness with the use of birth control. This is the use of antibiotics. Studies show that birth control and antibiotics do not mix well at all.


When you take any form of medication including antibiotics it is in your best interest to consult with your physician before taking any type of birth control products such as oral or patch forms. Your physician will be able to counsel you on your options when they have this information.


Keep in mind that nearly any drug is unsafe to take when you are on birth control, as some of these other drugs may induce complicated side effects. Antibiotics such as Penicillin, Ampicillin, Minocycline, Griseofulvin, Rifampin, Nitrofurantoin as well as several others can cause problems when taking birth control.

You can expect the effects of any type of oral or patch birth control to cancel out with the use of these antibiotics, since birth control and antibiotics do not mix well. You stand a high risk of becoming pregnant while taking antibiotics. For this reason, you should consult with your physician about all the medications you take and the risks involved.
Since physicians are aware of the results when combining birth control and antibiotics they are able to make recommendations of the added protection, you might need to prevent an unwanted pregnancy. This added protection is the use of secondary external birth control options.

To help with protect from having an unwanted pregnancy men can use condoms, whereas, women can make use of cervical cups and diaphragms. These are barrier methods of birth control. They are effective only once; therefore, a couple will require the use of a new barrier method every time they have intercourse.

When looking for signs of compromise to your birth control when using antibiotics, you will most often find that the monthly cycle of a woman begins to become off course. Generally, this will mean that there is a mild showing of blood known as spotting or mid-cycle bleeding.

If you experience this sign, be sure to contact your physician for help and advice. It is also wise to begin the use of secondary methods of birth control. When it comes to antibiotics and birth control, it is better to be safe than to be sorry and not having to deal with an unwanted pregnancy.