This is just one of the fundamental and unclear questions the fall of Roe v. Wade made us all ask again: are there birth control pills for men? Once you do a quick Google search and confirm that the answer is no—it still isn’t, after decades of scientific advancement and social progress—you’re left with a lot of questions. The most unpleasant creature, why do not appear are there male birth control pills? In 2022, the lack of male birth control pills seems like a blatant inequity and societal failure, especially when you stop to consider that the first method of contraception pills for women was introduced in 1950. Yes, that’s almost three quarters of a century ago. Since then, birth control technology for women has expanded to include a wide range of options to meet each individual’s needs. However, here we are looking at the same two birth control options for men that existed back in the day I love Lucy and Father knows best: condoms or vasectomy.

The limitations of these two male birth control methods hardly need to be pointed out. But we will: In theory, condoms offer 98 percent protection against pregnancy, but in practice they are 13 percent the failure rate (since not everyone uses them perfectly), plus there’s the risk of being caught without a condom or being tempted to skip the condom just this once. A vasectomy provides almost foolproof protection against pregnancy, but it can be scary and expensive – not to mention a major commitment. A reversal is an option if a man has decided he wants to have children, but it is a longer and more complicated surgical procedure that is not 100 percent successful. After Roe, some providers saw a surge the number of men who want to have a vasectomy but the preservation of their sperm – after permanent sterilization there is the risk is if one day they decide to have children.

So why aren’t there better birth control options for men? It’s not that most men still hold the view that women should bear the brunt of responsibility for family planning and birth control – not at all. Actually, one a recent survey 1,500 men between the ages of 18 and 44 found that 82 percent were interested in new male contraceptive options. And it’s not that no work has been done to create a more modern form of birth control. Clinical trials for a birth control pills for men happened in the 1970s, when the pill for women was becoming mainstream. Hormonal pills worked – more or less the same way oral contraceptives work for women, but there are other problems when it comes to men’s health. First, men produce millions of sperm every day, while women typically only release one egg each month. And birth control pills, which reduce sperm count by blocking testosterone in men, require multiple daily doses—not entirely practical—and cause side effects such as depression, weight gain, elevated LDL cholesterol, and decreased libido. Of course, female birth control pills themselves can have many side effects, but historically many women have been willing to tolerate them as a trade-off to avoid an unwanted pregnancy, which they see as a greater risk to their health and well-being. creature Another challenge: Over the years, the regulatory landscape has made the development of male birth control pills more difficult, to the point that big pharmaceutical companies may not find the field profitable.

The future of male birth control options.

Only recently has research into male birth control pills (including a pill called dimethandrolone undecanoate, or DMAU) and other new forms of male contraception really gained traction, and increasingly limited access to abortion in the United States has given the idea of ​​male contraception new urgency. How New York Times An opinion page recently said that there has never been a more important time for oral contraceptives for men than in post-Roe America. Funding from governments as well as non-profit organizations such as the National Institute of Child Health and Development Male Contraception Initiative is helping some new male contraceptive options finally move into human clinical trials. However, most of the latest technology does not take the form of hormonal birth control pills. Instead, various technologies temporarily inhibit sperm production with minimal side effects. One of the most promising is a sperm blocking implant, like an intrauterine device (IUD) for guys, but it requires an injection into the vas deferens, the tube inside the testes. And more reversible options for contraception are currently in clinical trials: non-hormonal male contraceptive which disrupts fertility by stopping the binding of proteins to vitamin A; and contraceptive gel which is rubbed into the shoulders and once absorbed reduces sperm count while maintaining healthy testosterone levels. (It’s worth noting: Condoms are the only form of birth control that prevents sexually transmitted infections. Some STIs, including chlamydia and gonorrhea, can affect reproductive health and, if left untreated, lead to infertility. )

It looks like the male birth control pill may not even be necessary if these alternative methods eventually work out in human trials, but for now, the best method of contraception for men continues to stack up condoms-or allow women to rule. (A tale as old as time.)