I/O
A Male Birth Control Pill Won’t Change Society
Science is close to giving us effective male contraceptive, but it won’t matter unless men are willing to use it
In I/O, columnist Lux Alptraum explores how technology intersects with sexuality and relationships. I/O will embrace the uncertainty of our future and help us craft a better tomorrow, together.
For several decades, reversible male contraception has been the cold fusion of sexual health innovation: always 10 years away. But recently, that “10 years” figure has started to seem a little more realistic. Vasalgel, a much-hyped method from the startup Revolution Contraceptives, blocks sperm from leaving the body with an injectable plug that can be dissolved with a second injection and has been working its way toward human testing.
Other methods, like a topically applied combination of Nestorone gel and testosterone gel that reduces sperm production to infertility levels, are already being tested for contraceptive efficacy in human subjects. And in March, an entirely different method — a pill currently known as 11-beta-MNTDC, which functions similar to the Nestorone/testosterone gel combo — passed safety tests conducted at the nonprofit scientific research organization LA BioMed and the University of…
