Eloine Contraceptive Pill

Eloine contraception treatment

Eloine is a combined, one a day contraceptive pill that contains less oestrogen than the regular combined pill.  . The pill provides 99% protection against pregnancy, provided it’s taken correctly. 

  • Take 1 pill a day with no pill break. Just follow the guide to colours 

  • Lower dose of oestrogen means you may have fewer side effects 

  • Requires annual blood pressure and weight check.

Start consultationRe-order

How to take Eloine

Take one Eloine contraceptive pill a day for 28 days. This should be at the same time every day.

Your strip has 24 light pink active tablets and 4 white inactive tablets:

  • First, take one light pink tablet daily for 24 days

  • Then take one white tablet daily for 4 days (you might get your period during this time)

  • Once complete, start a new strip of 24 light pink and then 4 white tablets straight away. (There are no breaks between pills).

Always begin with the light pink tablet in the upper left corner and follow the arrows on the strip.

How does Eloine work?

The Eloine birth control pill contains 2 hormones, ethinylestradiol (a synthetic oestrogen) and drospirenone (a synthetic progestogen) that work together to prevent pregnancy by:

  • Stopping ovulation (egg release)

  • Stopping fertilisation (when sperm meets egg).

Each light pink pill contains different hormone levels. So it’s important to take them in the exact order shown on the pack to make sure they work properly.

Each pack has 28 pills:

  • 24 light pink ‘active’ pills

  • 4 white ‘inactive’ (placebo) pill

How effective is Eloine?

As long as you use it correctly and follow the advice of your clinician, Eloine is 99% effective at preventing pregnancy. However, if you don't take it as directed, there's around a 9% chance you'll get pregnant which means 9 in 100 women will. 

 

If you are experiencing vomiting or severe diarrhoea while taking Eloine, your protection might be reduced. So, keep taking your pill as usual and, if you are having sex while you're unwell, always use condoms.

The general advice for women using oral contraceptives is to follow the instructions for missed pills if vomiting occurs within 3 hours of taking it (or you experience severe diarrhoea for more than 24 hours). Women should be advised to consider other options than oral contraceptives if diarrhoea or vomiting persist.

Important: Only start Eloine if you're certain you are not pregnant.

How soon after taking Eloine are you protected?

If you start taking Eloine on days 1-5 of your period:

  • You should be protected immediately, as long as you do not have a short or irregular menstrual cycle.

If you start after day 5 or have a short/irregular cycle:

    

  • Use condoms for 7 days if you have sex. Your clinician can advise if you need extra contraception during the first week.

Eloine side effects

Like any medicine, the Eloine contraceptive pill can have side effects and some women might experience more irregular bleeding with a low-dose pill. However, this usually settles in a few months. 

Other possible side effects can include headaches, feeling sick, breast discomfort, or mood swings. Everyone's different though and many women find they experience no side effects at all.

Eloine does carry a slightly higher blood clot risk compared to some other pills, so in rare cases, blood clots can develop. You'll find detailed information about side effects and proper usage in the patient information leaflet.

 

If you do have any concerns about the risk of blood clots, or any Eloine pill side effects​, just contact us via your account.

Contraception medicines

Frequently asked questions

If you miss a pill, what to do next depends on which pill you missed and when you missed it.

White inactive pills (last 4 tablets):

Just discard the missed pill and continue with your pack as normal. Your contraceptive protection is not affected.

Light pink active pills (tablets 1-24):

  • Less than 24 hours late: Take the pill as soon as you remember and continue your pack as normal. You're still protected against pregnancy.

  • More than 24 hours late: Your protection may be reduced. Next steps depend on when you last took your pill and where you are in your pack. Please check the patient information leaflet for specific guidance.

Yes. If you're breastfeeding, you can start taking Eloine from at least 6 weeks after giving birth.

According to the NHS, there is no evidence that taking the pill makes you put on weight or changes your sex drive. 

If you do notice any weight changes throughout your menstrual cycle, this is likely to be due to fluid retention and other factors not related to the pill.

If you want to delay your period for any reason - though you might want to talk to our GP before you do - you can do so by:

  • Not taking the white placebo tablets from the fourth row and going straight to the next strip of Eloine

  • Finishing the new strip

You may experience light or menstruation-like bleeding while using this second strip.

Please see the patient information leaflet for further information on this.

Yes, you can request and pay for Eloine by completing an online consultation through an online doctor service such as ours. If you are suitable, you can be prescribed treatment.

For all combined contraceptive pills, we'll ask you to tell us your height, weight, and blood pressure. That way we can be sure Eloine is safe for you to use. You can give us this information during your online consultation.

If you've previously bought Eloine from us and want to re-order, you'll need to complete a new online consultation.

  

Eloine, like other combined contraceptives, can raise your blood pressure and this may be dangerous. That’s why your blood pressure should be checked before starting treatment and then annually.

 

Whether you've had a recent blood pressure check perhaps at your GP practice, or measured it yourself with a home monitor, we’ll ask you to include this information as part of your consultation.

Eloine can usually be taken alongside other medications. However, we need to make sure it's safe for you to use. So you'll need to let us know about any prescription medications, over-the-counter products, and recreational drugs you're currently taking.

As well as Eloine, you can also request contraceptives such as NuvaRing and Evra Patch, and choose from a range of combined pills, low-dose pills, and mini pills.

 

Find out more about our contraception options.

 

Although there are long-acting contraceptives too, including implants and the coil. These are only available through your GP or family planning clinic.

 

Condoms can also prevent pregnancy and if you're using another type of contraceptive, they also provide effective protection against STIs.