Yaz is a prescription birth control pill that contains the hormones drospirenone and ethinyl estradiol. Produced by Bayer HealthCare, Yaz is designed to prevent pregnancy when taken within four hours of the same time daily. Currently, Yaz is approved by the FDA as a contraceptive and as a treatment for moderate acne and PMDD, a more severe form of PMS.
The hormones in Yaz may cause mild symptoms, such as headaches, breast tenderness and breakthrough bleeding. In rare cases, however, Yaz has been reported to cause severe, potentially fatal side effects, including heart attack, kidney damage and pulmonary embolism.
Hormone Level of Yaz and Yasmin
Yaz and Yasmin both contain drospirenone and ethinyal estradiol. While each of these medications contains 3mg drospirenone, Yaz contains 10mcg less of ethinyal estradiol than Yasmin (20 mcg versus 30mcg respectively). Both are known to cause the same range of mild to severe side effects.
24 Day Active Hormones in Yaz
Unlike many birth control pills that are 21/7, Yaz is a 24/4 contraceptive tablet. This means that the first 24 pills are active with hormones, while the final four are placebos (pills not active with hormones). The lack of hormones in the last four pills triggers a woman's uterine lining to shed, thus allowing her to menstruate.
Women can skip the inactive pills (and continue taking hormones) to skip a menstrual cycle. However, spotting or breakthrough bleeding may occur.
Yaz Hormone Imbalance
Women who are living with a hormone imbalance, particularly those who are going through perimenopause (the stage of physical change that precedes menopause), will likely experience any combination of:
- Allergy symptoms
- Growth of facial hair
- Low sex drive
- Urinary tract infections
- Vaginal dryness
- Weight gain
- Wrinkly skin
Typically, doctors prescribe Yaz (or another oral contraceptive pill, OCP) to balance a woman's hormone levels and, thus, relieve her of uncomfortable and possibly painful symptoms.