Women on the birth control pill had surprisingly lower risks of heart disease and stroke and no increased risk of breast cancer, according to the largest women’s health study ever done. The findings by the Women’s Health Initiative, the biggest study on oral contraceptives, are contrary to what many previous studies have found. Results from nearly 162,000 participants were presented Wednesday at an American Society for Reproductive Medicine conference. The same federal study that led millions of women to abandon use of hormones after menopause now provides reassurance that the pill is safe. Doctors say the type of hormones and the stage of life when they’re used may be what makes them helpful at one point and harmful at another.
