Synthetic contraceptive hormones occlude the ability of nicotine to reduce ethanol consumption in ovary-intact female rats.

ABSTRACT: Rates of tobacco and alcohol use in women are rising, and women are more vulnerable than men to escalating tobacco and alcohol use. Many women use hormonal birth control, with the oral contraceptive pill being the most prevalent. Oral contraceptives contain both a progestin (synthetic progesterone) and a synthetic estrogen (ethinyl estradiol; EE) and are contraindicated for women over 35 years who smoke. Despite this, no studies have examined how synthetic contraceptive hormones impact this pattern of polysubstance use in females. To address this critical gap in the field, we treated ovary-intact female rats with either sesame oil (vehicle), the progestin levonorgestrel (LEVO; contained in formulations such as Alesse®), or the combination of EE+LEVO in addition to either undergoing single

SUBMITTER: Maher EE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11577355 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature