Male-reliant birth control habits such as withdrawal and using condoms have long since been considered by many health professionals as unreliable, and new studies show a possible birth control shot could be available to men in the future. The main problem is, a clear decision cannot be made on the safety of the symptoms.
A study of 320 men co-sponsored by the United Nations and published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism revealed that a hormonal shot for men would effectively prevent pregnancy in female partners. The shot primarily involves synthetic testosterone.
Urologist at NYU Langone Medical Center Dr. Seth Cohen said on the study, “basically, the brain assumes the body is getting enough [testosterone]…The testicle’s production of testosterone as well as the testicle’s production of sperm [shuts down].”
The contraceptive method was reported to be almost 96% effective within the group studied. However, 20 men dropped out early due to side effects with reports of injection site pain, muscle pain, increased libido, mood swings and acne. There was also one suicide death, but researchers concluded that the fatality and 39% of symptoms reported weren’t due to the contraceptive.
Another problem was that not all men returned to fertility within the projected recovery time. On average, it took 26 weeks to fully recover, but eight men had still not returned to fertility after 52 weeks. Five, after individual study, eventually became fertile. It is not known if one is fertile, due to only partially recovery.
The controversy arose when medical professionals questioned the contraceptive due to the listed symptoms, as many female contraceptives have produced very similar results and been distributed to the public nonetheless. According to the CDC, about 62% of women of reproductive age use birth control, most often taking the pill or undergoing sterilization.
A study of prescriptions filled by over 1 million Denmark women revealed similar patterns of depression and mood disorders as those reported in the study of male birth control. Hormonally-induced effects such as changed libido, acne, mood swings and more are also common with many female contraceptives.
In terms of permanent or life-threatening effects, female birth control also has its issues. If a woman were to become pregnant after sterilization – as no contraceptive has a flawless efficacy rate – it could be an Ectopic pregnancy, which is painful and can be life-threatening. The pill can cause infertility, like the male birth control shot, as well as increase risks of cancer, heart attacks, and strokes.
Cohen later said, “If anything, this may wake us up to finding out better hormonal contraceptives for women, right? Because certainly, I know that a lot of young women don’t get the type of counseling that maybe they deserve when it comes to contraception.”
He also commented on the danger of altering young people’s hormonal patterns. The main problem for many, though, lies not only in the use of birth control, but in women being given a heavier responsibility to take contraceptives with unpleasant side effects that have been deemed inhumane for men. More information on the study or birth control statistics can be found on numerous national news websites or the official CDC website.