Stopping Menstrual Periods Is Safe, Experts Say
Hormonal medications are mostly used for birth control, but doctors shouldn’t forget another important use, suppressing menstruation, according to a new report from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).The guidance, General Approaches to Medical Management of Menstrual Suppression, is especially timely given the growing concerns about future access to reproductive medical care, ACOG said in a statement. That’s partly why the organization wants to emphasize the role hormonal medications play beyond preventing pregnancy.Requests for Menstruation Suppression, or Stopping Monthly Bleeding, Are CommonThe desire to stop periods, whether briefly or for a long time, is fairly widespread, says a coauthor of the report, Kathryn Stambough, MD, an adolescent gynecologist and an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. “Suppression of menstrual cycles is an area…