What is Sprintec?
Sprintec is a combined birth control pill. When you take it exactly right, your chances of getting pregnant are less than 1%. If you take Sprintec and make the occasional mistake by missing a pill, it’s not quite as effective. It still gives you a good level of protection (around 91% on average).
There are two active ingredients in Sprintec pills, which are synthetic versions of the natural hormones estrogen and progesterone.
How does Sprintec work?
Sprintec works in three ways to stop you becoming pregnant.
Firstly, it prevents ovulation. This is the process where the body releases an egg ready to be fertilized. If no egg is released, pregnancy can’t happen.
Sprintec also changes the lining of the womb. So if an egg did happen to be released and become fertilized, it wouldn’t be able to attach itself to the uterus. This uterine lining builds up and then sheds when you have your period.
The “period” you have when you’re using hormonal birth control isn’t the same as a normal period, because the lining doesn’t build up in the same way. It’s technically a withdrawal bleed, which is usually lighter than a true period.
The hormones in the pill also thicken the mucus in your cervix. This makes it harder for a sperm to reach and fertilize the egg.
Is Sprintec a generic pill?
Yes. Sprintec is the generic for the Ortho-Cyclen pill, a FDA-approved combined birth control pill. So there shouldn’t be any difference in how well they work or their side effect profile. The only real difference between the two is branding, which means the packaging and name.
Another important aspect about generic and branded versions is price. Generic products tend to be cheaper, despite the fact they do exactly the same thing as their brand-name counterparts. So it pays to always see if there is a brand-name version you can use.