British researchers said their study, which should reassure many millions of women across the world who have taken oral birth control pills, found no link between the drugs and an increased long-term risk of dying sooner.

"The results of this study are enormously reassuring and suggest that in the longer term the health benefits of the contraceptive pill outweigh any risks," said Richard Anderson of Edinburgh University and the Medical Research Council human reproductive sciences unit, who was not involved in the study.

The research, published in the British Medical Journal on Friday, followed 46,000 women for nearly 40 years, creating "more than a million woman-years" of observation, according to Philip Hannaford from Aberdeen University, who led the study.

The results showed that in the longer term, women who used oral contraception had a significantly lower rate of death from any cause, including heart disease and all cancers, compared with women who had never taken it.

But the scientists said their findings may only be true for women who have taken older-style pills rather than those on more modern types of drugs, since their study began in 1968.

"Many women, especially those who used the first generation of oral contraceptives many years ago, are likely to be reassured by our results," Hannaford and colleagues wrote.

Around 12 million women in the United States and some 3 million women in Britain take the contraceptive pill.

Earlier reports from the same study -- known as the Royal College of General Practitioners' Oral Contraception Study and one of the world's largest ongoing investigations into the health effects of oral contraceptives -- suggested the drugs may increase the risk of dying sooner, particularly in older women or those who smoked.

While the newest data also showed a slightly higher risk in women under 45 who are current or recent users of the pill, the researchers said the effects in younger women disappear after about 10 years and the benefits in older women outweigh the risks in younger women.

According to a new study, published on the British Medical Journal website Thursday, women who have taken an oral contraceptive pill are less likely to experience fatal health problems.

The Royal College of General Practitioners' (RCGP) Oral Contraception Study, which was led by University of Aberdeen professor Philip Hannaford, followed 46,000 women for 40 years.

According to a March 11 press release, "The results show that in the longer term, women who used oral contraception had a significantly lower rate of death from any cause, including heart disease and all cancers (notably bowel, uterine body and ovarian cancers)" compared to those who had never used the birth control pill.

"We have known for a while that whilst women use the pill they have a small excess risk of disease but that seems to wear off," Hannaford told BBC Scotland. "What we have never known is, what are the really long-term effects? This study, after following up a large group of women for 39 years, has shown there is no increased risk among women who have used the pill, in fact there is a small 12-percent drop."

According to the study, younger women were more at-risk that older women. Those under 30 years of age experienced 20 more deaths per 100,000, while 30-39 year olds experienced four additional deaths. However, women aged 40-49 years of age experienced 14 fewer deaths per 100,000, while that number jumped to 86 fewer deaths for 50-59 year olds, 122 fewer for 60-69 year olds, and 308 fewer for females over 70 years old.

These most recent findings contrast earlier ones from the RCGP Oral Contraception Study, which had reported that use of birth control pills could result in an increased risk of stroke or cardio-vascular disease, particularly among smokers and older females.

 Source:reuters