What’s happening
In the late 1950s, an American biologist named Gregory Pincus began researching how hormones might influence the female reproductive cycle and thus prevent pregnancy. In 1960, the first oral contraceptive was approved by the FDA.
Pincus’s work led to one of the most important medical breakthroughs in modern history. Over the past 50 years, various forms of hormonal birth control have become so common they’re known simply as “the pill.” But Pincus didn’t focus only on women. He also hoped to create a similar treatment for males. After minimal research, however, he abandoned the pursuit.
To this day, no male birth control product has made it to market. But over the past year, there has been promising early progress on new treatments — including a pill, a gel that’s rubbed onto the skin and an injection that acts as a nonsurgical vasectomy — that could finally bring the first male contraceptive to the public. If that happens, research suggests a “male pill” could drastically reduce unplanned pregnancies, especially in developing countries.
Why there’s debate
There are a number of factors that have prevented the creation of male birth control, some of them medical and others societal.
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