Oral contraceptives for men? Roaring applause and standing ovation! But let’s face the current reality. Men only have two (2) effective methods of birth control available to them – condoms and vasectomy. Since my main target audience is the black community, they only have one as the mere mention of vasectomy as a form of birth control is akin to an abomination. , men do not mess around with their reproductive organs. It’s off-limits! No wonder when the news broke that there could be a possible third option, it sent our community into a frenzy. And rightfully so because I do believe it’s high time for men to get some skin in the game.
Scientists have reportedly developed a male oral contraceptive pill that was successful in trials on mice and that there were no noticeable side effects observed. Good news but animal trials are different than human trials so the next step is to have this entered into clinical trials towards the end of this year. This is a remarkable development but let’s give some background on the efforts that have gotten us here before we celebrate. Looming like a big elephant in the room is whether or not this will change much.
The female birth control pill was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 62 years ago and for as almost as long as that time, researchers and scientists have been trying to find an effective comparative for men to alleviate the burden on women regarding fertility and family planning. The female birth control pill uses hormones to disrupt the menstrual cycle but that comes with a heavy cost. The most common side effects of the birth control pill includes weight gain, depression and an increase risk for heart disease. On the contrary, this male version is non-hormonal and if successful in human trials, will be a game changer.….. not only for men but for science. You see, finding a suitable alternative that doesn’t cause hormonal imbalance is incredible! The scientists were able to concoct a chemical called YCT529 (and no, I don’t know what it stands for LOL!) that targets the alpha protein (retinoic acid receptor [RAR]) which is responsible for “cell growth, sperm formulation and embryo development.”
This essentially lowers or suppresses sperm count. When the chemical was given to the male mice in the trial, it reduced their sperm count and was found to be 99 percent effective in preventing pregnancy at mating. Sounds more effective than the often boast about pull out method to me. I am grateful at the prospect for an expansion in methods available for men but I can’t ignore the fact that there are questions swirling around on whether women can trust men entirely to use them consistently. People with uteruses who can get pregnant, unfortunately, will continue to carry the burden of family planning but I am happy that there will be one more option added to the mix; for men that is.
Are you optimistic that this will work? Let me hear your thoughts below.
