It’s been over 200 years since the invention of the rubber condom, and since then, developments in male contraception have been scarce. Aside from the condom, a man’s options are limited to withdrawal, abstinence, or sterilisation, all of which are flawed in either convenience or reliability.
The female contraceptive market, however, is overwhelmed with options. A woman can wear a patch, take a pill, or get a shot. She can be fitted with a copper IUD, a diaphragm, or a hormone-filled ring.
Today more than 100 million women are using the pill, making up about one-fifth of overall contraception in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and North America.
2019 data indicates that female methods of birth control make up as much as 85 per cent of all contraception in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Countries within Central and Southern Asia largely rely on female sterilization to avoid unwanted pregnancy which is 98 per cent more common than male sterilization.
With more than 50 per cent of the world relying on female methods of contraception, this imbalance holds women primarily responsible for something that the majority believe to be a shared duty.
Over 50 per cent of men surveyed in 2005 say that decisions about birth control are shared between both them and their romantic or sexual partners.
Spain shows the highest rate of collaboration with over 80 per cent saying that contraception is a joint decision. France shows the lowest mutual decision making and the highest rate of female-only decisions, making up just under 40 per cent.
So why don’t we have a male pill already? There has been much talk of a male pill since the 1970s when developments first started, but several hurdles have prevented the product from ever making it onto the shelves. Mainly due to the presumption that not enough men would be willing to use the product to weigh out production costs.
These setbacks caused many major pharmaceutical companies to stop research in the early 2000s, leaving only non-profit organisations, governments, and universities, all of which have limited funding directed to the cause.
The belief that not enough men would be interested in new types of hormonal contraception doesn’t match what this data from 2005 is suggesting.
This research shows that the majority of men surveyed in all countries, excluding Indonesia, would be willing to try a male hormonal contraceptive if one was available.
Germany and Spain lead the way with about 70 per cent of men showing interest and less and 6 per cent disapproving of the idea.
The future of contraception depends on increasing the options for men, matching the desire for shared responsibility of birth control, and ensuring true reproductive freedom for all.
(Featured Image: An empty contraceptive pill package laying on the ground on October 7, 2006. As of 2019 more than 1 million women globally rely on the pill for contraception. GNARLS MONKEY)
