Breast growth is a natural part of puberty, and some women may experience changes in their breasts when taking birth control pills. The hormones found in these drugs can increase your chest size, but they are not permanent and will return to normal when you reach the placebo pill week of your pill pack.
Estrogen
Estrogen is a sex hormone that’s produced by the body naturally during puberty. It’s responsible for a lot of physical changes, including wider hips and bigger breasts. Estrogen also helps shape the breasts by changing how fat cells are distributed throughout the body. This is why some women’s boobs look larger on birth control, especially when they’re first starting taking it and after having their period.
Hormonal birth control pills typically contain a combination of estrogen and progestin. These synthetic hormones change the chemistry in the body to prevent pregnancy, but they’re also known to cause side effects such as bloating, fluid retention, and breast growth. According to Healthline, these changes may be caused by the body’s natural response to the hormones or due to the increased estrogen and progestin levels in the bloodstream.
Regardless of the reason, it’s important to remember that these increases in hormones are temporary. Breast size usually returns to normal after a few cycles of the pill or when you stop taking it altogether.
This is why it’s so hard to answer the question “does birth control make your boobs grow?” as it will vary between women and depend on many different factors. If you’re concerned about your breast size, speak to a doctor who can recommend a non-hormonal birth control method that works best for you.
Progestin
In addition to estrogen, birth control pills contain progestin, a synthetic form of the naturally occurring progesterone hormone. This hormone helps prevent pregnancy by thickening the uterus lining and thickening cervical mucus, making it harder for sperm to reach an egg and cause a fetus. However, progestin also impacts how the body metabolizes water, which can lead to fluid retention in other parts of the body — including the chest. This is what makes many women feel bloated while on hormonal birth control, says Dr. Constance Nasello, an OB-GYN in Chatham, Ontario.
While the bloating and breast tissue growth associated with hormonal birth control can be uncomfortable, it’s important to remember that these changes aren’t permanent. In fact, many women experience their pre-birth control breast size again after a few months or when they stop taking the pill.
Hormonal birth control can do more than just make your boobs grow — it can help ease PMS, reduce acne, obliterate period pain, and even get rid of some girls’ tits. But each person’s body has a unique balance of natural hormones, so the effects of birth control can vary from one woman to another. This is why it’s important to talk to your doctor about the birth control method that’s best for you. The most common hormonal birth control methods include the pill, the Mirena IUD, Nexplanon implant, and Depo shot.
Water Retention
The estrogen and progestin in hormonal birth control can cause edema, or fluid retention, which may make your breasts feel larger and fuller, says Roskin. This isn’t a permanent change, though, and will probably go away once your hormone levels return to normal after you finish your birth control regimen.
In fact, this side effect is most likely to happen when you first start taking a new batch of pills with active hormones. And if you have a combination pill that contains both estrogen and progestin, it’s even more likely that your breasts will grow in size. Non-hormonal birth control methods like the copper IUD are unlikely to cause breast growth because they contain no or very little estrogen and progestin.
If you’re worried about your boobs getting bigger while on the pill, talk to your doctor to get a prescription that will work best for you. And remember that breast tenderness and pain is totally normal, especially right before your period. Just take some ibuprofen to help ease the discomfort.
Women’s breasts are enlarged during pregnancy and breastfeeding because they develop protective fat layers and milk glands, respectively. But anecdotal reports suggest that some forms of birth control can also increase your cup size. While there isn’t a lot of scientific proof to back up these claims, many women do experience this side effect and find that their boobs become a little bigger while on the pill.
Weight Gain
A woman’s breast size can change based on her weight and diet, so it’s important to maintain a healthy weight. If a woman is overweight, her breasts may feel or look bigger while on hormonal birth control. This is because the extra weight can put pressure on your breast tissue.
Whether you’re using the pill, ring, patch, shot, implant or IUD, you can expect your boobs to become heavier and fuller than usual while on hormonal birth control. This happens because of water retention triggered by the estrogen and progestin in the hormone-based methods of birth control. It’s also common for women to experience enlarged breasts during their first two months of taking the pills, as their body adjusts to the added hormones.
According to The Lowdown, a website dedicated to contraception, most women who take the combined hormonal pill are more likely to see changes in their boobs than those on a progestin-only or hormone-free method. But the truth is that most changes in breast size are not permanent and typically return to normal once a woman has been on the pill for a few months or stops taking it altogether.
A woman named Darcie recently shared a video of herself in a racy blue latex bra claiming that her busty chest is all thanks to her birth control. She claimed that she went from a small B cup to a large DD cup in just two months. The video has been viewed 2.2 million times so far and her claims have many people curious about what she’s doing differently.
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