Hormonal Contraception and Depression: CEU response to published study

This statement is a CEU response to a study published in JAMA Psychiatry titled Association of Hormonal Contraception with Depression.

A recently published Danish study reports that women are more likely to be started on antidepressants for the first time or to be diagnosed with depression for the first time if they are currently using or have recently used hormonal contraception (HC) than if they have never used HC or have not used HC for over six months.

This statement acknowledges that this study adds to the existing conflicting evidence regarding a potential association between HC and depression but does not demonstrate any causal association. The CEU recommends that women should be informed by their contraceptive provider that HC may affect mood but there is no clear evidence that hormonal contraception causes depression.

Read the Statement in full below.