The birth control pill, in addition to the explicit function in its name, can bring several other benefits to women's health. Many gynecologists recommend the pill to treat conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome. It can also be effective in relieving menstrual cramps and helping to combat premenstrual tension.
Excluding the pill, the woman can still use other contraceptive methods, such as patches and contraceptive injections. However, all of these treatments are focused on the female body. Now scientists in the United States may be close to the creation of the male birth control pill.
Have some researchers at Harvard University been experimenting with a new substance in mice? and the results are quite satisfactory. The substance acts by decreasing sperm production and causing a temporary state of infertility. The best news is that there were no side effects: hormone levels remained unchanged during medication use, libido also did not drop and fertility can be restored by stopping treatment.
Does the pill actually exist?
There is a drug made and consumed only in China that would act as a male birth control pill. It is called Nefertil and was developed thanks to studies conducted by the Brazilian researcher Elsimar Coutinho, from the Human Reproduction Center of the Federal University of Bahia School of Medicine (UFB). The method has existed since the 1980s, but its production has not been authorized by health agencies in Brazil.
This medicine is made from a 100% natural substance extracted from cottonseed and called Gossipol. It would act by deactivating the enzyme responsible for sperm maturation and, according to the researcher, would not alter testosterone levels, for example.
Using this medicine, a man who wanted to stop being sterile would need to cut the treatment for about three months.
The novelty discovered in the United States, in turn, works from the molecule JQ1, which was discovered due to studies that were being done in search of a cancer treatment. The effectiveness of the molecule is currently tested against leukemia and lung tumors.
During research, scientists suspected the compound could have other applications and began testing on mice. The big challenge at the moment is to turn the substance into pills so that it can be marketed on a large scale and enable millions of women around the globe who for various reasons cannot take the birth control pill.
Developing a male birth control pill (April 2024)
- Family, Contraceptive Methods
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