Let’s call it the “man pill.” We can come up with a better name later, but for now what you need to know is that a new birth control pill for men appears to be working.
Like the birth control pill for women, the experimental male contraceptive has proven to be very effective.
“They’ve created it so men don’t make sperm,” said Dr. Andrew Carroll.
The contraceptive is called dimethandrolone undecanoate, or DMAU. The pill is taken daily and after 30 days, has proven to be safe and effective.
“The side effect profile has not shown to be a negative for men because it doesn’t go into the prostate, it doesn’t go into the skin and it doesn’t affect hair,” said Carroll.
The study included 100 men between the ages of 18 to 50 years and took place at the University of Washington Medical Center and at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. Three different doses of the drug were tested;100, 200 and 400 milligrams.
All the test subjects taking the drug showed a suppression of testosterone. All of those in the clinical trial who took the drug did experience weight gain and a decrease in HDL “good” cholesterol.
12 News asked both men and women what they thought about the test pill, “I think it’s something that would be really cool to get out there,” said Kailey Clark.
“I think it would be a fantastic idea,” said Spencer Bienstock.
Still in the testing stages it could be years before the pill actually hits the market but so far, the results are positive. What we don’t know is what if any long term health risks are associated with the pill.