Scientists’ latest developments on the male contraceptive pill have revealed that the drug is safe and it won’t destroy one’s sex drive.

The new pill called dimethandrolone undecanoate, or simply DMAU, was for the first time successfully tested on 83 men for a month.

Why it has taken long for the male contraceptive to be made

The development of the male contraceptive pill to mimic that of the once a day female contraceptive pill has taken long to make due to the fact that men “metabolize and clear out the hormones it delivers too quickly”.

The new pill contains a long chain fatty acid that slows down the clearance of the pill in the system thus allowing it to last longer just as in the case of the female contraceptive pill.

The pill just like the female version, contains an androgen which is a male hormone such as testosterone and a progestin.

How the study was conducted

Researchers from the University of Washington Medical Centre tested three doses of DMAU – 100, 200 and 400 mg – on 83 men between the ages of 18 and 50 years old.

The participants were subject to blood sampling for hormone and cholesterol testing on the first and last days of the study.

From the findings, those that took the 400mg dosage showed “marked suppression” of their levels of testosterone and two hormones required for sperm production.

The researchers also found that the pill only worked if taken with food.

“Despite having low levels of circulating testosterone, very few subjects reported symptoms consistent with testosterone deficiency or excess,” said lead researcher in the study Professor Stephanie Page.

Other male contraceptive options

Other forms of male contraceptives that are still in development include the topical gel and a long acting injection.