--- title: Do female pilots want to suppress their periods with birth control, and does continuous birth control help? description: Most wanted menstrual suppression but few actually used continuous birth control. Those who did had fewer side effects and were better at remembering to take url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/menstrual-suppression-using-oral-contraceptives-survey-of-deployed-female-2009/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - Do female pilots want to suppress their periods with birth control, and does continuous birth control help? Survey study, 2009 # Do female pilots want to suppress their periods with birth control, and does continuous birth control help? Most wanted menstrual suppression but few actually used continuous birth control. Those who did had fewer side effects and were better at remembering to take pills. Early or limited evidence 58 female U.S. Army aviation personnel on combat deployment ## What they did Gave a voluntary anonymous questionnaire to 62 female U.S. Army aviation personnel deployed for combat operations. 58 responded. Asked about using birth control pills continuously to suppress menstruation and other factors related to pill use. ## What they found 81% had experience using birth control pills and 93% knew continuous use suppresses periods. 66% wanted period suppression but only 33% used any birth control, and only 15% used it continuously. Of those not using continuous pills, 35% didn't know enough about them and 44% forgot to take daily pills. Women using continuous pills were more compliant, had less spotting and fewer unexpected periods than regular users. There was a trend toward less cramping with continuous use. ## What it means for you Many female pilots want to suppress periods during deployment, but lack of knowledge and difficulty remembering daily pills are barriers. Education and better strategies for taking pills could help. This is from one military group. 58 female pilots 66% wanted period suppression 15% used continuous pills ## About the study Original title Menstrual suppression using oral contraceptives: survey of deployed female aviation personnel Authors Powell-Dunford N, Cuda AS, Moore JL et al. Journal Aviation, space, and environmental medicine Year 2009 Study design Survey study Participants 58 Read the paper [doi.org/10.3357/asem.2566.2009](https://doi.org/10.3357/asem.2566.2009) ## Topics [Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Oral contraceptives and drospirenone](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-hormonal-contraceptives/)[Quality of life and daily functioning](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-quality-of-life/)[Stigma, attitudes and culture](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-stigma-culture/) Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits. Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor. ## Related studies Survey study, 2023 Is PMDD diagnosis associated with more severe depression and anxiety and lower well-being? Survey study, 2021 Do female military officers want to suppress their periods during training? Survey study, 2023 Do male and female obstetricians and gynecologists approach PMDD and PMS diagnosis and treatment differently? Survey study, 2011 Can military women successfully use birth control pills to stop their periods in field conditions? Systematic review, 2025 Does teaching adolescent girls about their menstrual cycle and health help reduce period pain and PMS? Systematic review, 2020 How common is PMS among women of reproductive age in Ethiopia? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗