Contraception for men

Contraception is used to prevent pregnancy and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs). There are only a few contraception methods available for men, in contrast to the many methods that are available for women. In fact, there are only two options for men if they want to protect themselves and their partners from STIs and/or their female partners from getting pregnant.

Which contraception methods are available?

There are two contraception methods for men. One is temporary and one is permanent.

Condom

The male condom is a thin rubber sleeve that is worn around the penis. It’s supposed to fit tighly around the erect penis. If the condom fits well, it’s a very reliable contraception method. Condoms are designed to contain the semen that a man releases during ejaculation, so that the sperm cells cannot reach and fertilise the female egg. This type of contraception is called a barrier method. Besides preventing pregnancy, a condom also protects both partners from STIs. Condoms are available in various shapes and sizes. There are regular rubber latex condoms, ribbed and napped condoms for extra pleasure, extra strong condoms for anal use, and extra thin condoms for a more realistic feeling. There are also vegan condoms and latex-fee condoms for people with latex allergies. The two disadvantages of using condoms as a contraception method are that condoms prevent skin-to-skin contact, which means you might not feel as much, and that you have to have a condom on hand everytime you want to have safe sex. The advantage is that condoms don’t contain any hormones, so you won’t experience any side effects. 

Sterilisation (vasectomy)

Male sterilisation, also called vasectomy, is the only other option when it comes to contraception for men. This is a permanent method for when you don’t want any (more) children. During a vasectomy, your tubes (vas deferens) are cut or blocked off, making it impossible for sperm cells to reach the prostate. Ejaculation still works and feels the same as before. The only difference is that your semen doesn’t contain sperm cells anymore. This makes it impossible to fertilise a woman’s eggs. A vasectomy is a procedure that is performed under local anaesthesia. The doctor makes two cuts on both sides of your scrotum, after which he cuts the tubes. The procedure takes about 30 minutes. Your scrotum and the area around it may feel sore for a couple of days. Although sterilisation is a permanent contraception method, it is sometimes possible to reverse it. Whether or not your tubes can be restored depends on various factors. Your doctor can tell you more about this.

What about the contraceptive pill for men?

A contraceptive pill for men has already been developed. In fact, the birth control pill as we know it was originally developed for men. However, there were side effects and people assumed women would be better equiped to handle those than men. The pill for men is still not available. There are a couple of reasons for this, for example the previously mentioned side effects. Pharmaceutical companies also seem unconvinced that they will be able to make a profit because of the high production costs.