Contraceptive pills have been getting more and more popular with single, sexually active women in the past decade where the typical brands have a seven-day pill layoff period each month that occurs when the lady starts her monthly period. Some women have expressed discomfort with this routine, and now the Food and Drug Administration has heeded their call.

The FDA has recently approved a new oral contraceptive for women called Lybrel which contains estrogen and progestin which counter-act the hormones that make pregnancy possible.

What it does basically is that it stops the woman's body from producing the essentials of her monthly cycle, resulting in a bloodless dry spell. Two separate year-long tests were conducted with 2,400 participants. In the initial months, a large chunk of the ladies missed their periods but had impromptu bleeding and spottings. In the last quarter of the study, however, 59 percent of the respondents said that they no longer experienced bleeding.

That's great news for the ones who hate to use tampons or feminine pads, but it should be stressed that along with this reprieve from bleeding comes some more responsibilities to the pill. Women using Lybrel must take pills 28 days a month compared to only 21 for the ordinary "bleeder" pills.

Doctors say that Lybrel carries no added health risks compared to other brands. However, old risks of stroke, heart disease and other cardiovascular conditions rise along with the use of the drug.