Lucette

Lucette is a combined contraceptive pill which contains synthetic versions of the female sex hormones ethinylestradiol and drospirenone. The hormones in the pill work by preventing your ovaries from releasing an egg.

These hormones also increase the amount of mucus in the neck of your womb (cervix) which makes it difficult for sperm to get through and reach an egg. The quality of the lining of your womb is also affected so that if an egg is fertilised, it won’t be able to implant itself, preventing pregnancy.

You take 1 Lucette tablet, at the same time each day, for 21 days in a row, and then you have 7 days where you do not take any tablets. You should take Lucette as advised by your doctor or pharmacist, as it may be slightly different depending on your health needs.

Here are some helpful tips on how to take Lucette:

1. You can take Lucette with water, on an empty stomach or after having some food.
2. Start on the correct day of the week. For example, if you start on a Wednesday this is indicated by ‘WE’ on the blister strip. Follow the direction of the arrows to take the next pill.
3. Once you have taken all 21 tablets in the blister strip and you’re on your 7-day break, you can expect a period-like bleed known as a ‘withdrawal bleed’.
4. After you have had 7 days of no pills, start the next strip of Lucette pills even if you are still bleeding. This means that you start every strip on the same day of the week and your withdrawal bleed will be on the same day each month

If you take Lucette like this, you are protected against pregnancy throughout, including the 7 days where you do not take a pill.

If you’re taking Lucette for the first time, you should start with your first pill on the first day of your period. This is also the beginning of your menstrual cycle, and you will be immediately protected from pregnancy. If you’ve missed the first day of your period, you can start taking Lucette on days 2 to 5 of your period to be protected straight away.

However, if you start on the sixth day of your period or later, you will need to take Lucette daily for 7 days until you are protected. During these 7 days, you will need to use additional protection, such as condoms, to avoid getting pregnant. You should also take a pregnancy test 3 weeks after starting the pill, if you had unprotected sex before you started taking it.

How long it takes for you to be protected after taking Lucette will depend on when you start taking it. If you start Lucette on the first day of your period, you are immediately protected against pregnancy. This is also true if you start on days 2 to 5 of your period.

However, if you start taking Lucette on the sixth day of your period, or any time after that, it will take 7 days to be protected. You will need additional protection against pregnancy, such as using a condom, during these 7 days.

If you miss taking a Lucette pill and you take it as soon as you remember, on the same day or the next day, you will still be protected. But if you miss more than 1 pill, it can take 7 days of taking a Lucette pill every day to be protected again.

As long as you do not miss taking any Lucette pills, you will be protected during your 7-day pill-free break too.

If you’ve missed a pill and you remember to take it within 24 hours, you are still protected against pregnancy. Take the next Lucette pills again at the usual time.

If you are more than 24 hours late in taking a pill, you will be less protected against pregnancy. The more Lucette pills you miss, the higher your chances are of getting pregnant. You should follow the advice below if it’s been more than 24 hours since you missed your Lucette pill.

• If you have only missed 1 pill, take this pill as soon as you remember, even if it means taking 2 pills on the same day, and carry on your pack as usual. You will still be protected and don’t need extra contraception.
• If you have missed 2 or more pills, take the last pill that you missed straight away and carry on the rest of the pack. Use condoms for the next 7 days.
• If you’ve missed 2 or more of the first 7 pills in the blister strip, you might need emergency contraception if you had sex without a condom during your pill-free week or in the week before you missed the pills. Contact a doctor if you are not sure.
• If you are in week 2 (the 7 pills in the middle of the strip), take the last pill you missed and finish the strip as usual.
• If you are in week 3 (the last 7 pills in the strip), you should take the missed pill, finish the strip and instead of the pill-free week, start the next strip. At the end of the next strip, you can have a 7-day break as long as you’ve not missed any more pills.
• If you missed more than 7 pills anywhere in the pack, you will need to use emergency contraception if you have had sex without a condom. You should start a new strip of pills and use condoms for 7 days.

Lucette is 99% effective at stopping you from becoming pregnant if you take the pills without missing any. However, Lucette will not protect you against sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Using condoms can help reduce your chances of getting an STI.

Lucette is safe to use and you can use it for as long as you need to prevent pregnancy. If there is any reason why you should not use Lucette, it may be because you’re sensitive to the hormones in Lucette or you have other health conditions.

At ZAVA, our doctors will make sure Lucette is safe for you to use, based on the answers you give in our online questionnaire. If you are unsure about anything, you can ask us any questions you’ve got about taking Lucette.

You may be at risk of developing blood clots when you take Lucette, but the risk is only slightly higher than normal.

In general, if a woman did not take a combined oral contraceptive pill, like Lucette, their risk of getting a blood clot in a year is about 2 in 10,000. With Lucette, 9 to 12 women out of 10,000 may get a blood clot.

Lucette can be taken when breastfeeding, depending on when you gave birth and other risk factors. If it has been more than 6 weeks since you gave birth, you can start Lucette safely as long as you have no other risk factors.

Although studies are limited, these do not show any negative effects of Lucette on how you produce breast milk or negative effects on the baby.

You can use Lucette if you have started having regular monthly periods, and you want to have sex without getting pregnant. If you have any allergies to Lucette or currently have certain medical conditions, you might not be able to use Lucette.

You should not take Lucette if you:

• have not started getting periods yet
• are pregnant
• have ever had a blood clot, such as a DVT (deep vein thrombosis) in your legs
• have health conditions that affect how your blood clots, such as protein C deficiency
• need an operation or will not be able to move around for a long time
• have had a heart attack, stroke or TIA (transient ischaemic attack)
• have angina (chest pain)
• have diabetes
• have high blood pressure or hypertension
• have very high levels of fat in the blood or hyperhomocysteinemia
• have had migraine with aura
• have liver disease or have ever had a liver tumour
• have problems with your kidneys
• have or have had breast cancer, cancer of the womb or cervical cancer
• have unexplained vaginal bleeding
• are allergic to anything in Lucette tablets, including peanuts or soya
• have hepatitis C and are taking certain medicines to treat it, such as ombitasvir, paritaprevir, ritonavir, dasabuvir

The side effects of contraceptive pills tend to be mild and go away after you’ve been taking the pill for a few months. You can always speak to a doctor and switch to a different pill if you do not want to take Lucette because of the side effects.

Common side effects of Lucette include:

• bleeding between periods
• breast pain or tenderness
• migraine
• nausea
• thick or white discharge, including vaginal yeast infections such as thrush

Uncommon side effects of taking Lucette include:

• breast enlargement
• changes in libido (sex drive)
• changes in blood pressure
• vomiting
• diarrhoea
• skin problems, such as a rash or itchy skin
• fluid retention
• changes in body weight

Rare side effects of taking Lucette include:

• breast secretion
• hearing difficulties
• skin problems, such as erythema nodosum or erythema multiforme
• blood clots

If you do have a rare allergic reaction to Lucette, stop taking the pills and call 999 straight away. An allergic reaction might mean you feel short of breath, get a rash on your body or your face starts to feel swollen.

You can not buy Lucette without a prescription because a doctor needs to check if it’s safe for you to take and how you get on with the pills. You can get Lucette online with ZAVA simply by filling out a quick questionnaire which our doctors will review. If Lucette is right for you, we’ll send it to you in discreet packaging straight to your door.

There are alternative contraceptive pills available from ZAVA if you’re looking to switch from Lucette. Other combined oral contraceptives which are similar to Lucette may have less oestrogen in them, such as Mercilon. There are also contraceptive pills that do not have oestrogen in them, such as the progesterone-only pill or mini pill. An example of a mini pill is Cerazette.

Is Lucette the same as Yasmin?

Lucette is the same as Yasmin as they both contain 0.03mg of ethinylestradiol and 3mg of drospirenone in each pill. The difference between Lucette and Yasmin is that Lucette contains soy lecithin. Therefore if you have a peanut or soya allergy, Lucette is not suitable for you. Both contraceptive pills contain lactose, so if you are lactose intolerant discuss this with your doctor.

Lucette is the generic version of Yasmin. Each of them are made by different medicines manufacturers. Check the patient information leaflet of either Yasmin or Lucette for a full list of ingredients.

Does Lucette help with acne?

Lucette is a combined oral contraceptive pill that can help with acne. The combination of hormones in Lucette may reduce sebum (oil) production and make skin pores less likely to clog. So your acne may improve over a few months.

Can Lucette cause mood swings?

It is possible for Lucette to cause mood swings, but this will improve after a few months as your body gets used to the pill. If you find that your mood swings are negatively affecting your health, you can speak to a doctor to switch from Lucette to a different contraceptive pill. You might want to try a pill which has less oestrogen in it or no oestrogen at all.

Does Lucette affect your libido?

Lucette can affect your libido, also known as your sex drive, but this should settle after a few months of taking the pill. If you find your libido does not go back to normal, you might want to speak to your doctor about whether or not Lucette is the cause. Your libido can be affected by your mood and other lifestyle habits too. You always have the option of coming off or changing your pill, and seeing if this helps bring your libido back.

Can Lucette affect my weight?

There is no proven direct link between the contraceptive pill and weight changes. Your weight can go up or down if you change how often you exercise, what you eat on a regular basis and even how much water you drink. You may want to consider what else may be causing your weight change after you start taking Lucette. After taking Lucette for a few months, if you think it is affecting your weight, talk to your doctor about taking an alternative pill.

Does Lucette stop your period?

Lucette does not stop your periods forever. When you take Lucette, you have a ‘period-like’ withdrawal bleed during your 7-day break at the end of a 21-day blister strip. This is like a period but tends to be lighter, and you are still protected from pregnancy during these 7 days as long as you have not missed any pills. To avoid these withdrawal bleeds, your doctor might suggest you take the blister strips back to back, without a 7-day break, for a few months.

If you want to get your normal periods back and get pregnant, you can stop taking Lucette at any time and speak to your doctor about family planning.