Will Aussie men be as brave as these mice?

Male-directed contraceptive methods are currently limited to condoms, vasectomy and withdrawal... but not for long.

Male-directed contraceptive methods are currently limited to condoms, vasectomy and withdrawal... but not for long.

The male contraceptive pill will soon be available at your local Chemist Warehouse… if an American lab packed with temporarily infertile mice is anything to go by.

An oral pill designed by scientists in the US has been proven to be 99 per cent effective in mice, without causing side effects. 

That's actually more protection against unwanted pregnancy than any of the versions offered to women that have been kicking around since the 1960s, which average at a 93 per cent efficacy rate.

This new pill for men could enter human trials by the end of the year, and a few years after that (with the help of a few million dollars in funding) it should be available for everyday use. 

“Scientists have been trying for decades to develop an effective male oral contraceptive, but there are still no approved pills on the market,” said Md Abdullah Al Noman, a graduate student working on the project at the University of Minnesota.

“We wanted to develop a non-hormonal male contraceptive to avoid these side effects.”

Australian male contraceptive expert Sab Ventura said the development was “very exciting”.

“They've shown that it works in mice, which means it's more than likely going to work in humans as well,” the Monash University professor said.

“The target is spermatogenic, which means to stop sperm from working. So now they really just have to show the long term safety of it.”

The pill has also been shown to be reversible, which had not yet been proven in any other clinical trials.

“The people that are likely to use an oral male contraceptive are likely to be young men who want to have children later in life,” Professor Ventura said. 

“They'd have to show that once you stop taking the contraceptive, then your fertility would return.”

But the question still remains of how eager men will be to take on the birth control option - and the responsibility that comes with it.

Male-directed contraceptive methods are currently limited to condoms, vasectomy and withdrawal. Professor Ventura said that globally, 81 per cent of men were willing to take an oral contraception. 

“Most recent studies have shown men are quite willing to take it, and that’s been a change over the past 20-30 years,” he said. 

“Particularly men between the ages of 18 and 25 are most willing to take it.” 

While there has always been a question mark over whether women would trust their partners to take the pill, Professor Ventura said that more than half would be supportive. 

“Sixty-six per cent of women globally would trust their men to take the contraceptive pill, which is encouraging to see,” he said. 

“It will be a little while before we see it on shelves, but it sure does seem like we’re heading in the right direction.”