Woman claims detox tea 'Bootea' counteracted her contraceptive pill

Woman, 27, claims she became pregnant after popular detox tea brand Bootea ‘counteracted her contraceptive pill’

• Crystal George, 27, used a ’14 day teatox’ from the brand promoted by celebs
• Three months later, she found out she was pregnant with Kovah
• Ms Geroge claims a doctor told her the tea can affect absorption of the pill
• The laxative ingredients in detox tea have been labelled as ‘dangerous’

A woman has claimed she became pregnant after popular detox tea brand ‘Bootea’ counteracted her contraceptive pill.

Crystal George, 27, from Shefford, Bedfordshire, used a ’14 day teatox’ from the brand promoted by swathes of celebrities on social media.

The tea is promoted as a quick fix for weight loss. But the laxative ingredients have been labelled as ‘dangerous’ by health experts. 

After returning from a holiday with her partner, Mike Gray, 28, Ms George felt unwell and thought she’d caught an illness.

But three months later, the online influencer discovered she was in fact 13 weeks pregnant. 

Ms George alleges a doctor told her detox tea can flush out the digestive system which can stop the pill from being absorbed into the bloodstream.

Bootea have previously admitted the tea can affect the reliability of the pill, with a wave of women having ‘Bootea babies’ as a result.

After giving birth to Kovah January, 2017, now two, the mother-of-one says she’s now happier than ever with her surprise baby. 

Crystal George, 27, from Shefford, Bedfordshire, used a ’14 day teatox’ from Bootea before going on holiday with her partner, Mike Gray, 28

Three months later, the online influencer discovered she was in fact 13 weeks pregnant

After giving birth to Kovah January, 2017, now two, the mother-of-one says she’s now happier than ever with her surprise baby

Ms George said: ‘I had been taking the contraceptive pill since I was 17 years old and never had any issues with it.

‘I took it religiously everyday so I was completely blindsided when my doctor told me I was pregnant.

‘When I explained I’d taken Bootea in previous months, the doctor explained it was probably due to that flushing out my system with a laxative effect that my contraceptive pill failed.’

Ms George said: ‘In hindsight, Mike and I are over the moon to have our daughter Kovah, but at the time I found out I was pregnant it was a huge strain on both Mike and my mental health.

‘We hadn’t been together long and I was petrified of what people thought of me falling pregnant so soon into a relationship, I didn’t even tell my own mum about my pregnancy until I was 20 weeks along.

‘Mike and I had planned to start saving to travel around the world but all that changed when I fell pregnant.

‘It was a really difficult time for both of us, but luckily we’ve come out the other side stronger as a couple and couldn’t imagine our lives without Kovah now.’

Ms George said she was ‘petrified’ of what people would think of her becoming pregnant 

Ms George said: ‘I didn’t even tell my own mum about my pregnancy until I was 20 weeks’

Ms George alleges a doctor told her detox tea can flush out the digestive system which can stop the pill from being absorbed into the bloodstream. She is pictured with the tea

Ms George claims that there was no warning of the affect the tea could have on the contraceptive pill on the packaging or leaflet.

Following the birth of daughter Kovah, who’s now two, Ms George is now looking to raise awareness of the potential problems between the contraceptive pill’s effectiveness and detox teas.

She said: ‘I’d say to people to 100 per cent do your own research into detoxing if you are considering it; but honestly a shift in diet will do more for your gut than tea.’

Three of the ingredients – yerba mate, fennel seeds and nettle leaves – have a laxative effect which causes frequent trips to the toilet.

In addition to this, the product contains dandelion leaf which has been shown to interact with estrogen-based contraceptives by either affecting how the drug is absorbed into the bloodstream, metabolised by the liver, or cleared from the body in urine.

The couple are ‘over the moon’ with their daughter but she was a surprise 

Ms George said the pregnancy was the ‘hardest time of her life’. Pictured with Kovah

Ms George, pictured with Mr Gill and Kovah at their home, said she took her pill ‘religiously’

Ms George added: ‘I don’t regret taking the tea as I have the biggest achievement and blessing I could wish for in my daughter.

‘I’m over all the issues that came when with the pregnancy but it was the hardest time of my life.

‘Whilst it was highly traumatic, I don’t feel bad about it at all because it gave me my beautiful girl, but my circumstances could have been very difference.’

Bootea has previously been advertised by countless celebrities on social media, such as Katie Price, Vicky Pattinson and Caggie Dunlop.

Actress Michelle Keegan reportedly used the tea to slim down before her wedding to Only Way Is Essex star Mark Wright – prompting countless brides-to-be to follow the same regime.  

Other brands to have used laxatives include Slendertoxtea and SkinnyMint, which is endorsed by Kim Kardashian’s sister Kylie Jenner.

In 2014, Bootea was ordered to remove various unsubstantiated health and weight claims from its website by the Advertising Standards Authority. 

Bootea have been contacted for a comment. 

Under their FAQ section, the brand say they cannot comment conclusively if the tea is safe for women conceiving, pregnant or breastfeeding.

They previously advised those who are on the pill to also use a condom while they are taking Bootea – a warning that does not appear on the packaging. 

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