Can men be trusted to take the contraceptive pill?

WHEN women complain their partners forget to take the washing off the line, can blokes be trusted to take the man-pill every day? Read what Aussies have to say.

Weekend relationships

A NEW scientific breakthrough has brought the long-promised male contraceptive closer to reality.

But, when women complain their partners forget to take the washing off the line, can blokes be trusted to take the man-pill every day?

What Aussies say

“I wouldn’t have a problem remembering to take it every day; I’ve taken a multi and fish oil tablets every day for five years. It’s just a matter of building these things into your routine.” – Dan, 47

"I've got friends who have been duped into parenthood by women who have 'forgotten' to take The Pill so at least this way men know they are covered." - Will, 33

“I don’t want another baby so I wouldn’t be forgetting to take it.” – Lee, 38

“I know my husband would be responsible when it comes to contraception. However, I also know he can be pretty forgetful, so I don’t think he’d remember to take the pill at the same time every single day.” – Lillian, 30

“Let’s face it: I can’t trust my boyfriend to remember to take a multi-vitamin, let alone a male contraceptive pill. Funnily enough he always remembers to buy beer though.” – Anne, 32

“I once had a guy I’d been seeing for months slip a condom off during sex (for his pleasure and my not-so-fun visit to the doctor the next day). So, the answer is NO!”
– Louise, 28

When will it be available?

Monash University researchers have just discovered a way to stop sperm swimming.

They did it by mutating a gene that delivers fuel to the engine room in a sperm’s tail.  

“It’s one extra piece of the puzzle to finding out how sperm are made and has opened the door to see what else is going on,” says Monash University’s Professor Moira O’Bryan of her team’s discovery.

It follows another win earlier this year, when a team of international scientists found that a cancer drug already in use could also be used as a reversible contraceptive in male mice.  

Despite a male contraceptive still being about a decade away, it’s already a sore point in the age-old battle of the sexes.

We asked the experts whether they think men can be relied on to be in charge of birth control in a relationship.

“Given my partner, as wonderful as he is, has trouble remembering to take a multi-vitamin or to feed the cat on occasion, my instinctive response is ‘no’,” says Melbourne-based psychologist Dr Traci Coventry.
 
“To be clear though, I do not think the male contraceptive is a bad idea. On the contrary, I think it’s about time men stepped up and shared responsibility for contraception.”

Women have had control of the pill since it was developed in the 1960s and two-thirds of Aussie women currently take it. So it’s understandable if very few would be willing to roll the dice and hand the reins over to their blokes.

“But I’ve never seen any evidence women are more likely to remember to take medication,” says Professor O’Bryan, who points to a University of Edinburgh survey that found only two per cent of women wouldn’t trust their partners to take the pill.

“The acceptance rate was high, so there is a market for it.

“These are couples in stable relationships and he wanted to give her a rest from taking a contraceptive. A high percentage of women have side effects: swelling, mood swings – it’s not an ideal drug.”

Coventry and O’Bryan agree that the male pill could also give men more control over unwittingly becoming fathers, especially in the case of one-night stands and casual relationships.

Still, it can be argued that women pay the highest price for an accidental pregnancy. Dr Coventry reckons society still has a way to go before contraceptive is a 50/50 responsibility.

“Until our culture moves toward sexual education of young men to the same standard as that provided for young women regarding sexual health, contraception, responsibilities of pregnancy or unwanted pregnancy, and associated emotional issues, the issue of women giving up full control of contraceptive to men is academic,” she says.

Pharmaceutical companies won’t stump up

But it appears that regardless of whether or not people want the male pill, the buck stops at pharmaceutical companies who, so far, have been dragging the chain.

Several have pulled funding on the development of male contraceptives over the years, including a hormone-regulated World Health Organisation drug, which was ready to be trialled on humans.

The reason? Money. Big pharma believes there just isn’t a market for the drug, which researchers like Professor O’Bryan find incredibly short sighted.

“It’s very disappointing for both consumers and researchers that the pharmaceutical industry has refused to rise to the challenge of taking new contraceptive options to market,” she says.

“We can all see what a positive impact new contraceptive options – male or female – could have globally.

“In a world where we still have crushing poverty and an emerging global warming problem, investment in facilitating the individual’s right to control their fertility would seem of obvious benefit.”

Follow this writer on Twitter: @cassie_white

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