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Does oral contraceptive use affect maximum force production in women?

Elliott KJ, Cable NT, Reilly T

Applied Biomedical Sciences Research Group, GKT School of Biomedical Sciences, Shepherds House, Guys Campus, London SE1 1UL. kirsty.elliot@kcl.ac.uk [corrected]

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effects of oral contraceptive use on maximum force production in young women. METHODS: In the study, 21 female subjects (14 pill users and seven eumenorrheic controls) took part. All pill using subjects had been taking a combined, monophasic oral contraceptive pill for at least 6 months. Maximum dynamic and isometric leg strength, maximum isometric strength of the first dorsal interosseus (FDI) muscle, and plasma concentrations of oestradiol and progesterone were measured on days 7 and 14 of pill consumption and day 5 of pill withdrawal. The eumenorrheic group was tested (FDI strength and hormone concentrations) on days 2 and 21 of the menstrual cycle. RESULTS: There were no significant changes in the concentration of endogenous oestradiol or progesterone or any measure of muscle strength between pill phases (p<0.05). The pill group did not significantly differ from the eumenorrheic group (p<0.05), despite a significant increase in the concentration of progesterone and oestradiol on day 21 of the menstrual cycle compared with day 2 of the menstrual cycle and pill consumption and withdrawal (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that oral contraceptive use does not significantly affect muscle strength. Moreover, oral contraceptive users were not stronger or weaker than their eumenorrheic counterparts.

Published 24 December 2004 in Br J Sports Med, 39(1): 15-9.
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