Oral Contraceptives and Depressive Symptoms in Young Women: Another Look

Is there an association between oral contraceptive (OC) use and depression, especially in adolescents? Researchers examined data from a Dutch longitudinal cohort study on 1010 girls and young women.

At four assessment points (743–903 participants per wave; mean ages, 16–26), participants rated depressive symptoms on a questionnaire and were asked whether they took an antidepressant. In the overall cohort, depressive symptoms did not differ between those who used OCs and those who did not. However, at age 16, OC users were more likely to endorse crying, hypersomnia, and eating problems. Excluding OC users who endorsed depressive symptoms at an assessment at age 13 weakened but did not eliminate the association at age 16.