In eight weeks on average, the gel reduced men’s sperm count to the level considered effective for contraception; this is faster than the nine to fifteen weeks observed with male contraceptive injections.
Researchers from the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) Contraceptive Development Programme believe that this may make the birth control option more appealing to men.
Every day, each of the 222 men who participated in the trial applied 5ml, or roughly a teaspoon, of the gel on their respective shoulder blades.
The substance blends testosterone with a man-made hormone known as Nestorone.
Testosterone by itself lowers sperm count, but when combined with Nestorone, the effects wear off faster and less testosterone needs to be administered to maintain levels that don’t interfere with sex drive or have any other negative consequences.
The product is the most sophisticated of a plethora of recently created male birth control methods; it is currently undergoing trials.
During the study, 24-year-old Logan Whitehead told News in the US that if the contraception is approved for general use, he will keep taking it, especially after witnessing his partner struggle with the birth control methods available to women.
“The gel was such an easy process,” he stated. “It was basically like taking the pill for the day.”
