The recent study has revealed that a female sex hormone, found in most parts of hormone-based birth control pills, has the potential to ward off complications arising from influenza infection and helps in curing damaged lung cells more quickly.

The study which has been done on mice, found that hormone progesterone was protective against the more serious effects of the flu by increasing the production of a protein called amphiregulin by the cells lining the lungs.

The progesterone hormone was not only effective on inflammation and damage associated with the flu, it also helps in repairing, study said.

Associate Professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Sabra L. Klein said, “Understanding the role that progesterone appears to play in repairing lung cells could really be important for women’s health.”

Klein added, “When women go on birth control, they don’t generally think about the health implications beyond stopping ovulation and it’s important to consider them.”

The study also said that sex hormones have an effect far beyond the reproductive system and that hormone progesterone may one day be available for treatment for women.

Klein further noted, “Despite the staggering number of women who take this kind of birth control, very few studies are out there that evaluate the impact of contraceptives on how the body responds to infections beyond sexually-transmitted diseases.”

By Prajakt K