My girlfriend recently began taking the pill. I heard from a friend that alcohol can decrease the effectiveness of this method of birth control even if she is completely responsible about it.

Studies have shown that alcohol does not decrease the effectiveness of birth control pills.

Conversely, studies have shown that taking the birth control pill affects the way women's bodies process alcohol, leading to higher blood alcohol concentrations (BAC) and intensifying the effects of intoxication.

While alcohol has no direct effect on the birth control pill's ability to prevent pregnancy, drinking it can indirectly decrease the pill's effectiveness if it interferes with a woman's ability to take the pill at approximately the same time each day or if it causes her to throw-up shortly after taking the pill. In general, alcohol can impair one's ability to act prudently, be that responsibly taking daily medication such as the birth control pill, using a condom to prevent sexually transmitted infections (STIs), or choosing with whom and in what ways to become intimate.

Alice

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