But Weingarten says that if you bring in a medical record, prescription notice or container, UHS can renew your prescription without an exam.

If a student has not previously had a gynecological exam, she will be given one to determine which type of contraceptive is best. The exam includes a pap smear, tests of her cholesterol level and blood pressure, and questions about family histories of breast cancer or diabetes, Faigel says.

The Pill and Its Side Effects

Clinicians at UHS can prescribe most FDA-approved types of birth control.

Bowman says she advises students that their choices are abstinence, the condom or the condom with vaginal spermicides, the diaphragm, the pill or depo-provera, a hormone administered by injection.

Though UHS does not prescribe the IUD or Norplant, Bowman can refer students to hospitals which can insert them.

The most common form of contraception which students use is the condom, followed by the pill, Bowman says. The pill--a daily oral contraceptive made of cycles of cycles of hormones which prevents ovulation--is the number one prescribed form of birth control, Bowman says.

The most common concerns about the pill are its side effects, the nurse practitioner adds. Woman are concerned with weight gain, bloating moodiness, changes in their body and long-term fertility problems as a result of the pill.

But most side effects are not serious, and there is no evidence of the pill causing longterm fertility problems, says Bowman. Also, women should not be concerned about consuming high doses of hormones, since the levels in the pill are "very low," Bender says.

The most common side-effect is break-through bleeding, or spotting between periods, according to Alice Verhoven, director of the Planned Parenthood clinic. Adjusting estrongen levels, however, often relieves this.

"There's a certain amount of being disconcerted when you find out that oral contraceptives are not like popping aspirin," says Faigel, who adds that reactions to the pill vary according to the individual.

"The [current] pills are so remarkably successful, both effective and without a great systemic reaction," adds Dr. Norman Spack, a private physician in Newton and a national expert on college health issues.

Some women fear that switching pills is unsafe, but doctors say there is no cause for concern. "There's nothing unsafe about switching pills," says Spack. "Women should be on the lowest strength pill that works."

In fact, the pill has many benefits, according to Chapin. It protects from ovarian and endometrial cancer and regulates the menstrual cycle, decreasing both cramps and flow. And the pill can sometimes improve acne.

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