ABU DHABI // Expatriates are stocking up on contraceptive pills from their home countries because they are afraid to ask for birth control in the UAE.

Doctors say some unmarried women have unfounded fears they might get into trouble if they request birth control from a GP or pharmacist.

“I know a lot of unmarried women, especially expatriates, who are scared to get a prescription here and, if possible, they get a stock of it from their home countries,” said Dr Nazura Siddiqi, who is a specialist gynaecologist at LLH Hospital in Mussaffah.

“It isn’t that if a woman goes to a pharmacy, legal authorities are informed.”

Oral contraceptive pills contain a combination of hormones that prevent pregnancy. Women usually need to take one per day.

“People from the West prefer the pill, as it controls the menstrual cycle efficiently and also as they are also more aware of it,” said Dr Siddiqi.

“One needs a prescription to buy an oral contraceptive in Abu Dhabi.

“However, the pharmacist does not ask questions about whether you are married or not, provided that doctors have given the prescription for it.”

Contraceptive pills are not just a method of birth control, Dr Siddiqi said.

They are sometimes prescribed to treat premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), polycystic ovaries and moderate acne.

In the UAE, most people are aware of the birth control pill and it is one of the most common forms of contraception, followed by intrauterine contraceptive devices (IUCDs), especially among Emiratis, she said.

Dr Naglaa Rizk, a consultant gynaecologist at Al Zahra Hospital, Dubai, said the rules of getting contraceptive pills vary across the emirates.

“In Dubai, you don’t need a prescription to obtain contraceptives pills, although you need one in Abu Dhabi,” said the American doctor. “Most of my patients have chosen to take contraceptive pills by themselves and use them.

“As a physician I am not a legal authority and I don’t ask questions about marital status,” she said.

“There is a stigma attached to using contraceptive pills in this part of the world as people think that they are used only as contraceptives and those who are unmarried feel worried due to that.”

K Vasudevan, pharmacy manager at LLH Hospital, Mussaffah, said many women try to purchase contraceptive pills without a prescription. “Contraceptive pills fall under the category of prescription-only medicine and thus we cannot provide them to people if they do not have a prescription,” he said.

“However, once a patient has obtained a prescription, we do not ask any questions. The only thing we enquire into is whether the patient knows how to administer the medicine,” Mr Vasudevan said.

Dr Yuliya Burmagina, a specialist in obstetrics and gynaecology at Femiclinic, at Dubai Healthcare City, said “the pill” is one of the widely used contraceptives and one of the best methods to be used.

Worldwide, an estimated 150 million women use this form of birth control.

Sometimes women prefer to stock up on contraceptive pills from their home country because of a lack of choice of oral contraceptives in this country, she said.

“Many modern forms of contraception are not available in the UAE,” she said.

These include NuvaRing, a combined hormonal contraceptive vaginal ring, or Qlaira, a type of hormonal contraception commonly known as “the pill” or combined oral contraceptive pill, and Implanon, a matchstick-sized rod that is inserted in the arm to prevent pregnancy, she said.

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