The European manufacturer of the emergency contraceptive pill Norlevo will include weight limits on the treatment.
European pharmaceutical regulators recently approved the new cautionary labels, although they are the first to report the limits, Mother Jones, "a nonprofit news organization that specializes in investigative, political, and social justice reporting," reported exclusively.
The warning label will state the pill is completely ineffective for women who weigh over 176 pounds and may be less effective in women 165 pounds and above.
The chemical makeup of American drugs such as Plan B One-Step, Next Choice One Dose, My Way, and others are almost identical to the European contraceptive drug, these drugs do not have a weight limit warning on their label. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has stated the pills may not be effective in women over 166 pounds.
Pills that contain the drug levonorgestrel are believed to be the most effective over-the-counter contraceptives and have the least side effects.
Medical experts are concerned about the recent findings on the limited amount of women that can benefit from emergency contraception.
"There's a whole swath of American women for whom [these pills] are not effective," James Trussell, a professor of public affairs at Princeton and a senior fellow with the Guttmacher Institute, told Mother Jones.
The average weight of American women over the age of 20 is 166.2 pounds, meaning a great deal of women will not be able to effectively use emergency contraception.
"Studies suggest that Norlevo is less effective in women weighing [165 pounds] or more and not effective in women weighing [176 pounds] or more" and that Norlevo "is not recommended...if you weigh [165 pounds] or more," the European drug Norvelo will state on its label, Mother Jones reported.
It is not-yet known if a pill effective for women of all weights is on the horizon.
"A dose increase of levonorgestrel is not proven to be a solution for this problem," Karina Gajek, a spokeswoman for HRA Pharma, told Mother Jones. "However, women with higher weight are advised to discuss alternative emergency contraceptive options with their physician: IUD or alternative oral emergency contraceptive."
Plan B One Step is sold for about $50, IUD insertion can cost $500 to $900.
