A Promising Male Contraceptive

After decades of research, men could have their own version of birth control pills if this potential drug makes it to the market.

Like the ones for women, these also use hormones to reach contraception. The treatment uses nestorone to limit testosterone levels and that lowers sperm production in the testes. Then a small amount of testosterone is added back at a lower level. It’s enough for maintaining normal sex drive and healthy muscle and bone tissue.  Too much testosterone can cause health problems. The clinical trial enrolled more than 200 men between 18 and 50 years old. The hormone was delivered through a gel rubbed onto each shoulder daily.  

Once absorbed through the skin, it circulates through the body including the testes. After 12 weeks of daily treatment, nearly 90 percent of the men had enough drop in their sperm count to achieve effective contraception.  

A male normally produces about 15 to 200 hundred million sperm in a fifth of a teaspoon of semen. After the treatment, these men’s sperm had dropped to below a million and stayed low for about 10 weeks. There was no decrease in sex drive, some weight gain, and acne around the shoulders.  These are more acceptable than the list of side effects women experience on birth control pills.  

The study is now testing the gel on 300 couples. If it makes it past clinical trials, the final test will be whether a drug company sees the benefit of providing true gender equality in birth control.