What is the most important information I should know about birth control pills?
• Take your pill at the same time every day. Each dose should come no more than 24 hours after the last dose. • Avoid smoking cigarettes while taking birth control pills. Smoking greatly increases the risk of having a heart attack, stroke, or blood clot. • Use another form of birth control if you miss several doses (see the package insert) or if you are taking drugs that decrease the effectiveness of birth control pills (see the section of this leaflet titled “What other drugs will affect my birth control pills?”).
