Male birth control is considered a controversial issue for lots of reasons. A few years ago large pharmaceutical companies like Schering, Organon or Wyeth announced the production of hormonal birth control designed especially for men, but the results of their research hasn’t been finalized yet. Why? Because the investments are huge and the market is not that receptive to male birth control pills. Several programs have been abandoned for this reason, and it seems that drug companies don’t show any renewal in their interest for this kind of birth control products.
Statistics show a certain willingness on the part of men to use alternative forms of birth control. Normally, male birth control should consist of some form of testosterone shot or pill that would impair the production of sperm. A certain prejudice has been recognized with women because many are reluctant to trust men to follow such treatments. For the moment, vasectomy is the only viable male birth control option, yet, few people are willing to try it. How would hormonal birth control work for men?
The male birth control solution has to combine testosterone with progestin so as to suppress the production of sperm but with process reversibility. This is not possible with a pill because the testosterone would be too quickly broken down by the liver. The solution seems to come from a monthly shot, or the combination of the ingredients in a topical products such as a cream. One third option is that of twice-a-year implants and although the procedures are invasive, they could be an alternative to women’s pill.
Between 10% and 15% of men do not respond to hormonal male birth control, which is quite a high rate of non-response. The issue is in the number of cells that need to be blocked. While with female hormonal treatments, there is just one egg to prevent from fertilizing, with male birth control, the treatment has to solve the issue of millions of spermatozoon. Race also seems to affect the efficiency of this birth control method although researchers don’t know why.
Last but not least, we should also briefly refer to condoms as the most commonly used form of male birth control. This is preferable for many couples around the world, as well as for people who change their sex partner often. It is the only birth control method that is non-invasive and protects against pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.