Until now, contraceptive pills on the market have only been used by women to avoid unwanted pregnancies. The risk of unwanted pregnancy can be significantly reduced with these pills. But now the facility is available to men.
At an event in Paris, a nurse named LaBritte showed the world something that made everyone curious. This thing is – silicone rings of different colors.
Let us tell you that across our entire planet, there are more than two billion men who are of childbearing age, that is, they are in the prime age to become fathers. Many times cases of unwanted pregnancies are also exposed. Women often have to bear the burden of avoiding unwanted pregnancies, while men do not have the option to stop having children, or rather, men cannot help prevent unwanted pregnancies in any way.
Now, a piece of good news comes out. Today, men have many options for preventing unwanted pregnancy. There are plenty of these options for men too, which you can buy right away. However, no matter what birth control pills are on the market, there is no 100% guarantee that they are completely effective.
More and more men are showing interest in controlling their fertility. Men’s interest in contraceptives is growing, according to a global study conducted with support from organizations including the Gates Foundation and the United Nations. 76% of men in Bangladesh, 76% in Nigeria, 70% in Vietnam, 66% in Congo, 62% in Cote d’Ivoire, 52% in Kenya and 39% in the United States expressed interest.
Male contraceptive options
Under the Male Contraception Initiative, scientists are working on more than 100 innovations. There are ways to stop sperm development. Other methods focus on preventing sperm from swimming so they can’t reach the egg. Other methods block sperm again. There are techniques that prevent sperm from fertilizing eggs.
Efforts to develop new contraceptive methods for men have so far failed repeatedly. So far, NES/T gel applied to the shoulder is leading the way in clinical trials. There’s also a gel called Contraline that blocks the tubes that carry sperm, and a non-hormonal daily pill option. It is currently being tested on humans but will not be commercially available for another 5 to 10 years.
Nurse LaBritt, who works with male birth control, said men can now use thermal birth control without having to wait. Labrit invented these silicone rings because of his personal problems. He told him that he was in love with a French girl and asked him to take responsibility for his sperm. With this in mind, Labrit developed a prototype of this Andro-Switch Ring together with his parents.
New Method: Thermal Contraception
Sperm production is temperature sensitive. These rings bring the testicles closer to the body, allowing them to absorb the body’s natural heat. A rise in temperature of just a few degrees can temporarily halt male fertility.
Thermal underwear with heating patches is on sale in France. In this condition, the testicles become enveloped in a layer of heat, which hinders sperm production.
One of the main ways to monitor fertility is through a semen examination (semen test) to assess sperm quality. To solve this problem, German researcher Dr. Rolf Tobisch from the Technical University of Mittelhausen (University of Applied Sciences) has developed a home semen tester, a device that allows people to test their fertility in the comfort of their own home.
However, bringing the product to market has been a challenge for Tobish. Medical certification is time-consuming and expensive, and big pharmaceutical companies are not ready to invest in it.
He has also developed a thermal contraceptive device that only heats the testicles for 10 minutes each month, which he claims can temporarily prevent male fertility.
Medical certification can take years and require extensive laboratory studies, clinical trials and health authority approval, Tobish said.
As a last resort, many inventors label their products individually as sex toys or health toys. On Thorome.com, thermal underwear is sold as comfort items and Labrit’s silicone rings are sold as “decorations.”
Testing on humans must assess whether each product is safe individually. But decades of research show it’s safe. For example, three independent studies examined whether increasing testicular temperature by 1–2 °C (33–35 °F) for at least 15 hours a day affects sperm production. Many couples rely on thermal birth control to prevent unwanted pregnancies.
Logan Nickels, chief research officer at the Male Contraception Initiative (MCI), said bringing the product to market would require the support of big pharmaceutical companies. But instead of stepping up to the plate, pharmaceutical companies are allowing startups to take risks.
The last major attempt was made not long ago. German pharmaceutical company Bayer tested the birth control pill on men and found it to be “effective with manageable side effects.”
Growing interest from men around the world suggests change is coming. The global contraceptive market is expected to reach $44 billion by 2030, so many countries are investing in this future.