The Change Mariner

FDA OKs 1st Chewable Contraceptive

(HealthDayNews) -- A chewable birth control pill that tastes like spearmint?

That's exactly what Ovcon 35 is -- an oral contraceptive tablet that can be chewed and swallowed. This new version of Ovcon 35, which received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval on Friday, provides one more alternative to the many types of oral contraceptives currently on the market, the agency says.

Ovcon 35 contains a progestin and an estrogen found in contraceptives that are already marketed.

The pill can be swallowed whole or chewed and swallowed. If the pill is chewed and then swallowed, the woman should drink a full glass -- 8 ounces -- of liquid immediately afterward so the full dose reaches the stomach and no residue is left in the mouth, according to the product's directions.

The FDA says Ovcon 35 is available only in a 28-day regimen. Each package contains 21 round, white, active tablets, to be followed by seven reminder, green inactive tablets to complete a four-week cycle.

The product is manufactured by Bristol Myers Squibb Company of Princeton, N.J., and will be marketed by Warner Chilcott, Inc., of Rockaway, N.J., the FDA says.