Starting
What are the brown pills in Trust?
Quick answer
The 7 brown tablets at the end of a Trust (levonorgestrel + ethinylestradiol) pack contain iron (ferrous fumarate), not hormones. They keep the daily habit going, and your withdrawal bleed usually comes while you take them. Missing a brown tablet does not lower your protection. Starting the next pack late does.
What is in the brown pills
A Trust pack has 28 tablets: 21 light-colored hormone tablets (levonorgestrel 125 mcg + ethinylestradiol 30 mcg) and 7 brown tablets of ferrous fumarate, an iron salt.[src] The brown ones have no estrogen and no progestin. The 21 hormone tablets do all the work of preventing pregnancy. Those 21 days of hormones keep protecting you through the 7 brown-pill days, as long as you start the next pack on time.
People call them iron pills (The brown tablets in packs like Trust. They contain iron, not hormones.), placebo pills (Inactive tablets at the end of some packs. Some packs use iron tablets instead.) or "reminder pills". On Trust, "iron pills" is the accurate name.
Why they are there
- Habit. You take one tablet every day with no break, so you never have to count 7 empty days and remember to restart. A late restart is one of the most common ways the pill fails: WHO treats a late new pack like missed hormone pills.[src]
- Your bleed. Your withdrawal bleed (The bleed during the inactive or break days of a pill pack. It is not a true period.) usually starts during the brown pills, because the hormones stop for those days. It is often lighter and shorter than a natural period, and sometimes it does not come at all.[src]
- A little iron. The iron is a small extra. It is not a treatment for anemia. If you are tired, pale or have very heavy periods, ask a doctor for a blood test rather than relying on these 7 tablets.
If your bleed starts before the brown pills or carries on into the new pack, that is usually spotting, which is common in the first 3 months.[src]
If you miss a brown pill
WHO's rule is simple: if you miss any non-hormonal pills, throw the missed ones away and carry on with one pill a day.[src] You do not need condoms and you do not need emergency contraception for a missed brown pill. What matters is that you start the first hormone pill of your next pack on the right day, the day after your last brown pill.
The risky mix-up is the other way around: missing hormone pills in the last week of the hormone row, right before the brown pills. WHO says that if you miss 3 or more hormone pills in week 3, you should finish the hormone pills, skip the brown ones and start a new pack straight away.[src] The Missed Pill Helper walks you through this for Trust.
Other packs are different
Not every pill has brown tablets, so do not apply the Trust habit to a new brand without checking the leaflet.
| Pack type | Examples | The last days |
|---|---|---|
| 21 hormone + 7 iron | Trust, Charlize | Iron tablets, no break |
| 24 hormone + 4 inactive | Yaz, Lizelle | Inactive tablets, shorter hormone-free time |
| 21 hormone, no extra tablets | Diane-35, Yasmin | A 7-day break with no tablets |
| 28 hormone, no break | Daphne, Cerazette | Every tablet has hormone; never stop between packs |
A Trust pack costs from ₱59.50 and needs a prescription. If you are just starting, read how to take Trust for the first time.
Frequently asked questions
Pwede bang hindi inumin ang brown pills ng Trust?
Puwede, dahil iron lang ang laman nila at walang hormones. Pero mas madaling hindi makalimot kapag tuloy-tuloy ang pag-inom araw-araw. Ang mahalaga ay masimulan ang bagong pack sa tamang araw.
Do the brown pills protect me from pregnancy?
No, they have no hormones. Your protection during those 7 days comes from the 21 hormone pills you took before them, as long as you start the next pack on time.
Why did my period not come during the brown pills?
A light or missing withdrawal bleed is common on the pill. If you took every hormone pill on time, pregnancy is unlikely. Start your next pack on schedule, and take a pregnancy test if you are worried.
This guide is for information. Talk to a doctor before starting, stopping or switching birth control.
Sources
- Trust pill listing: Prescription Required, Watsons PH
- Managing missed pills (Family Planning Handbook), WHO and Johns Hopkins CCP
- Combined pill: risks and side effects, NHS