280: Sarah Hill | This Is Your Brain on Birth Control

Mating Preferences

Hormonal birth control significantly influences women's mate preferences, often leading them to favor less masculine partners. Sarah Hill explains that the pill suppresses natural sex hormones, maintaining a state of progesterone dominance, which affects attraction to masculine traits 1. This shift can impact long-term relationship dynamics when women stop taking the pill, as they may find their partners less appealing than before. Hill highlights the complexity of these changes, noting that they can alter sexual and relationship satisfaction based on partner attractiveness 1.

The birth control pill might be shaping these big relationship dynamics.

--- Sarah Hill

Additionally, fertility cues play a role in attraction, with both men and women unconsciously detecting fertility status through subtle signals like scent and appearance 2.

   

Relationship Dynamics

The use of hormonal contraceptives can profoundly affect relationship satisfaction and dynamics. Sarah Hill discusses how the pill alters neurotransmitter systems and stress hormone profiles, potentially leading to mood changes and memory issues 3. These changes can influence how women perceive their life events and relationships, sometimes contributing to depression. The complexity of these dynamics is further compounded by factors like pre-pill hormone levels and relationship quality 4.

The relationship between your pill status at the time you choose your partner, and then how attractive your partner is, and how that changes your relationship satisfaction over time.

--- Sarah Hill

Hill suggests that women consider going off the pill when seeking long-term partners to allow natural hormones to guide attraction, though the science is still evolving 4.