City life has long been associated with the dangers of consumption. Here we focus on the consumption of opioids by Australian urban women and its effects on their sexual and reproductive functioning. We interviewed 109 Australian women with HCV (Hepatitis C) from two urban centres about contraception and their sexual and reproductive health needs. These interviews alerted us to a potential health consequence of drug use that appears to be under-researched: it appears that opioid use may reduce women’s estrogen levels which in turn has consequences for their health more broadly. Here, we bring together qualitative evidence from interviews with women opioid users and from research literature to argue that women’s opioid use may reduce their estrogen levels and lead to serious health consequences. At present,
however, we are unaware of research that has empirically tested this proposition. This research urgently needs to be conducted, and if our theory is supported then treatment protocols and services for opioid-using women should be modified accordingly
