Most know there is no such thing as a male birth control pill (they consider durex condoms to be their saviour) – yet. Men who take on the responsibility of preventing unwanted pregnancies have been depending on either condoms, or if they have all the children they want, a vasectomy. Do not give up hope. Several manufacturers in various countries are working on formulas even as we speak.
The Parsemus Foundation is an organization that looks for ways to advance innovative and neglected medical research. Its work includes a better non-surgical way to spay dogs and cats, breast cancer prevention, HIV prevention, and its latest endeavor a male birth control pill called Vasalgel. Rather than a pill it is a long-lasting injection. It is in trials now and it is estimated to hit the US from 2018-2020. There are thousands of men on the waiting lists to be test subjects as you can imagine. For it to become available in the US it has to pass rigorous government FDA approval.
This formula is a non-hormonal polymer that is injected into the male directly into his sperm carrying tubes. The area is numbed with a local anesthetic and physicians gain access through the scrotum. It is supposed to block sperm but can also be reversed with an injection that eliminates the original polymer. More trials will begin in 2016. It is not believed to interfere with the production of testosterone or any other male hormone.
Indonesia has begun conducting trials on a product called Gendarussa. Also non-hormonal it is supposed to have properties that will prevent sperm from fertilizing an egg. It is an herbal formula found in a shrub that grows in Papua. The researchers at PT Indo Farma believe this shrub works on the enzymes necessary for sperm to enter an egg. This is indeed a male birth control pill. In an enhanced study in Indonesia 186 of 350 married men took the pill for 30 days. There was only one pregnancy among the families using the pill. However, this is a really small sample. Before this product would be allowed into the US or UK, there would have to be much larger trials to determine effectiveness as well as the results of long-term use.
There are other sperm inhibitors in the works but do not be surprised if they fall by the wayside. According to one survey in the UK only 11% of men would take the ‘pill’ versus their spouses using female birth control pills or them using condoms. This prompts a chain reaction. Large pharmaceutical companies are in business to make large (if not huge) profits. If potential users say they would not buy it, the product becomes a big financial risk.
Look at it realistically from a single man’s perspective. None of the proposed products protect against HIV and STDs. Yes, they do not want to get a woman pregnant but they are vigilant about not developing a disease.
Condoms have been and will continue to be the best protection against pregnancy and STDs. If used as directed they are 98% effective.
