Effect of oral contraceptive agents on thiamine status

Abstract

This study aimed to determine the effect of oral contraceptives (OCs) on thiamine status in 112 women aged 19-37 years. Subjects were divided into 2 groups by socioeconomic level (low and upper) and matched on the basis of social class to non-OC using controls. The duration of OC use in both experimental groups exceeded 6 months. Determinations of urinary thiamine excretion/gm creatinine were made. None of the study participants had thiamine deficiency. However, 15.2% of subjects in the lower socioeconomic OC group compared to 10.5% of women in the lower socioeconomic non-OC users group and 5.9% of subjects in the upper socioeconomic OC group compared to none of those in the upper socioeconomic non-OC users group had thiamine excretion values considered low (33-96 mcg/g). These findings tend to support the observation that OCs influence vitamin metabolism.