Most contraceptives, including the widely-used combined pill, could double women's risk of heart attacks and strokes, according to a major study published in the British Medical Journal.
The findings have significant implications, as approximately 248 million women worldwide use hormonal contraceptives daily.
Danish researchers analysed more than two million women aged 15 to 49 over a period of up to 11 years.
The comprehensive study, led by experts from Nordsjællands Hospital and the University of Copenhagen, recorded 4,730 strokes and 2,072 heart attacks among participants.
Approximately 248 million women use hormonal contraceptives daily
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Women taking the combined pill were twice as likely to suffer a stroke or heart attack compared to those not using contraception.
The vaginal ring showed a 2.4-fold increased risk of stroke and 3.8-fold higher risk of heart attack, while the patch was linked to a 3.4-fold increased stroke risk.
Despite these findings, experts emphasise the absolute risk remains very low.
Dr Channa Jayasena, consultant at Imperial College London, noted that "only three per 1,000 women were affected by a stroke or heart attack; the risk among those on the pill was about 6 to 10 per 1,000".
Dr Becky Mawson, clinical lecturer at the University of Sheffield, urged women not to stop using contraception based on the study.
"The risk of stroke and heart attack in pregnancy and postnatal period is significantly higher than the risks reported in this study for contraceptives," she said.
Dr Jayasena advised women to focus on "smoking cessation, healthy eating, and exercise" to minimise the increased risks associated with contraceptive pills.
He recommended women with high stroke or heart attack risks "should strongly consider a hormonal coil, because of its lack of associated increased stroke or heart attack risk".
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Experts emphasise the absolute risk remains very low
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Therese Johansson from the Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden stated that 80% of women worldwide have used hormonal contraception at some point in their lives.
“The most commonly used hormonal contraceptive, the combined oestrogen-progestin pills, was associated with a two-fold increase in the risk of ischaemic stroke and myocardial infarction,” she wrote in a linked editorial.
“It is important to note that the absolute risk remains low. Nonetheless, these side effects are serious and given that approximately 248 million women use hormonal contraceptives daily, the results carry important implications.”
