It’s amazing that male birth control still isn’t a thing. Options are limited for men who want to take control of their reproductive health—and unfairly skewed to be almost entirely a woman’s burden. While vasectomies are starting to become more popular, it’s not a reasonable option for men who don’t want to have children yet, but want that option in the future. Thankfully, other forms of male birth control are getting closer to becoming a reality. Namely, the male birth control pill. Researchers have been saying that the male version of the pill is on the way for years now, but there still hasn’t been any word of an official release. If you’re curious about the male birth control pill, here’s what you need to know.
1 of 8
MirageC / Getty
It’s Coming…
On March 24th, a team of researchers at this year’s Endocrine Society meeting announced that their version of the male birth control pill, 11-beta-methyl-19-nortestosterone dodecylcarbonate, “passed tests of safety and tolerability when healthy men used it daily for a month, and it produced hormone responses consistent with effective contraception.” The 11-beta-methyl-19-nortestosterone dodecylcarbonate is being called the “sibling pill” to dimethandrolone undecanoate, another male birth control pill that was presented at the conference last year. The two versions are being developed simultaneously, and news on both fronts is good, which is a significant step forward for the male birth control pill. For now, researchers are cautiously optimistic that one of the two versions could become widely available.
Unfortunately, it’s still going to be awhile. Even though initial tests look promising, sadly, the pill is still another 10 years away from release. Other researchers say it may be closer to 20.
2 of 8
Richard Newstead / Getty
It’s Effective (We Think)
The male birth control pill is part progestin and part modified testosterone. It serves to lower the circulating progestin and testosterone levels in the body. The pill aims to prevent pregnancy by decreasing sperm production, while still allowing progestin and testosterone to serve their other functions in the body. Researchers believe that the male birth control will take 60 to 90 days to become effective. By comparison, the female birth control pill typically takes around 30.
While it’s important to note that this latest round of testing focused on safety rather than efficacy, we already know that lowered levels of testosterone in the body decrease sperm production. New tests will be conducted on efficacy soon. Plus, a hormonal birth control pill would likely be significantly more effective than condom usage, so it’s a good option to continue developing.
3 of 8
Karl Tapales / Getty
It’s Reversible
If a man wants to stop taking the birth control pill and father a child, the effects of the pill are fully reversible. In contrast, vasectomies are rarely reversible, so this would be a great option for men who want a temporary birth control option.
4 of 8
PeopleImages / Getty
It’s Generally Safe
In the past, it has been a challenge for researchers to lower testosterone levels without creating serious side effects for men. (Testosterone serves a ton of different functions in the body, so lowering T levels can wreak havoc on men.) But by combining testosterone with progestin, this version of the pill seems to create far fewer and milder side effects. This latest research study was conducted on only 40 volunteers, so the results aren’t conclusive. But the participants did not report experiencing any severe side effects. None of the men reported that their sex lives were negatively impacted by the pill. Over the course of a 28-day safety test, none of the men dropped out of the test due to concerns about safety or side effects.
5 of 8
Lasse Kristensen / Getty
There Are Some Side-Effects
A small number of research participants reported feeling some mild side effects, including fatigue, acne, headache, weight gain, mildly decreased sex drive, and mild erectile dysfunction. No participant stopped taking the drug because of side effects, and the pill passed all safety tests.
6 of 8
Caiaimage/Trevor Adeline / Getty
It’s Starting Some Important Conversations
As the male birth control pill marches towards release, it’s stirring up some much-needed conversations about who shoulders the burden for pregnancy prevention and what we’re willing to endure in exchange for pregnancy prevention. Sometime in the future, couples will be able to negotiate who takes birth control and when. It’s interesting to note that the concerns that a lot of men have about hormonal birth control, like decreased sex drive, fatigue, and weight gain, are the same side-effects that women have been dealing with for decades.
Women often also have to deal with our culture normalizing that “that’s just the way it is” when it comes to side effects. Even by simply asking whether or not men would be willing to take a hormonal birth control pill, we’re confronting important questions about birth control in general.
7 of 8
Petri Oeschger / Getty
Women Are Very Excited About It
Pregnancy prevention is a task that women have taken on pretty much since the beginning of time. As someone who experienced horrible side effects from the female birth control pill, and who passed out from the pain during an IUD insertion, I can say that the idea of a male birth control pill absolutely delights me! I would be thrilled to have my partner shoulder the burden, at least for a while. I know that countless other women feel the same.
8 of 8
Maskot / Getty
So Are Men
In a worldwide survey of 9,000 men published in the journal Human Reproduction, 55 percent of men said that they would be open to trying a male birth control pill. We’ll see how those men feel once the pill is actually available.
