Genius Website That Lets You Review Your Contraception Is Dubbed "TripAdvisor For The Pill"

The female founder of a website that lets you share reviews of contraception has dubbed it "TripAdvisor but for The Pill".

Alice Pelton, 30, from Salisbury created The Lowdown two years ago after noticing the contraceptive pill was causing her mood swings.

The site aims to deliver easily accessible, honest feedback from thousands of contraception users by getting them to anonymously answer a few simple questions about their experiences.

Exploring everything from periods, weight, mood and sex drive, it covers 16 different methods including various brands of pill, implant, coil, condom and even fertility-tracking app Natural Cycles.

"The idea just came to me one night: we review everything from our care salesmen to our hotels. Why don't we review our contraception as well?" Alice told The Sun.

"For many women, the only way they can find out side effects is by asking their doctor who can only relay his or her patients' experiences - or by asking their group of friends. Both are useful but they're small sample sizes," she added.

The Lowdown already has hundreds of reviews but Alice hopes she will reach 5,000 for each type of contraception, gathering enough data to examine major patterns in side effects.

Currently, the most common side effect from contraception is 'tender breasts,' according to The Lowdown, with 39 per cent suffering. Vaginal discharge, spots or acne and womb cramp are also frequently recorded.

Others include headaches, enlarged breasts, vaginal dryness, better skin, back pain and thrush.

Alice also noted other more unusual experiences such as increased or darker body hair, dizziness and even issues wearing contact lenses.

"It's an insight into quite how intricately the hormones can affect our body chemistry," she added.

It's not just physical side effects that are flagged - 39 per cent of site users say that, like Alice, using hormonal contraception negatively impacted their moods and emotions.

However 70 per cent did say they were happy with their current choice.

You can visit The Lowdown here.

Topics: Life News, Sex & Relationships, Health

Amber Ascroft

Amber is a freelance beauty editor and lifestyle journalist. She's written for the likes of STYLIST, Red, Harper's Bazaar, Mail Online and Good Housekeeping and starred on ITV's This Morning.