Male birth control? Here are 3 methods headed our way

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While a pill for men certainly isn’t coming to the pharmacy anytime soon, unfortunately, there is reason for (muted) hope. Several promising products are quietly making their way through clinical trials.

More than a decade in the making, the male birth control that’s furthest along in clinical trials is a gel called Nestorone-Testosterone. The gel contains testosterone and a progestin, which is a synthetic form of the female sex hormone progesterone.

In a new, yet-to-be published study recently presented at the annual Endocrine Society meeting, researchers revealed data from a 100-person randomized controlled trial showing that a male birth control pill — dimethandrolone undecanoate, or DMAU — appeared to be safe when used every day for a month.

The effects of the drug also stuck around in the blood for at least 18 hours, suggesting DMAU would only need to be taken once per day.

[Reversible inhibiation of sperm under guidance, RISUG] involves injecting a polymer gel into the vas deferens to block sperm, rather than cutting or tying the vas (a vasectomy). And the treatment can be reversed with a shot that breaks down the gel.

Researchers who have modeled the impact of a new male contraceptive estimate that even if only 10 percent of interested men took up the novel method, we’d see unintended pregnancies fall by up to 5 percent in the United States.

Read full, original post: The 3 most promising new methods of male birth control, explained

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