With more than 100 million women worldwide taking an oral contraceptive daily, many are eager for the pill to be available for men.
The ANZAC Research Institute in Sydney, Australia is one of many pharmaceutical companies that are confident, thanks to recent developments in their research, that male contraception will be available soon.
In a study by ANZAC, 55 couples using a male hormonal injection as their only form of birth control reported no pregnancies during a 12-month period.
The hormones in the shot temporarily turn off the normal brain signals that stimulate sperm production, making sperm diminish over the duration of the injections.
No major side effects were present during research.
Company representatives say they hope to offer the hormones in pill form to the general public within the next five years, according to its Web site.
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"This is about providing people with choices," said professor David Handelsman of the institute and principal investigator of the study. "When couples are at different stages of their reproductive life their needs differ."
Handelsman said, though, that the new contraception is designed for couples in stable relationships and not for people looking to avoid the responsibilities of pregnancy.
"The use of contraception really depends on a couple's ability to negotiate their contraceptive needs and their desire for a family," he said.
UNM student Rebecca Purdy said trust is a big issue when considering male contraception.
"I think that most women would stay on (the pill)," she said. "I wouldn't totally rely on someone to take it."
Sunshine Gonzales, a medical assistant at Planned Parenthood of New Mexico agreed.
"It would be wonderful if you could get men to take it," Gonzales said. "We would be all for it."
UNM student Joe Sanchez said he is all for male contraception, but thinks the injections would be more effective.
"At least you wouldn't have to remember it," he said. "A lot of times you forget to take birth control until it is too late."
ANZAC is not alone in its research, with more than 50 companies worldwide involved in male contraception development.
The World Health Organization, the self-proclaimed leader in contraception research, has conducted more than 20 studies in 16 countries to gauge the effectiveness of male contraception and the public's openness to it.
One of the studies used the results of 600 couples who used the male pill over the period of a year. According to the organization's Web site, the couples were able to accurately control the risk of pregnancy through the pill's use.
"This is a very important study, because it was the first to ever fully test an approach which could go forward into practical development," Handelsman said. He said he expects the research to be completed within five years but said it will then be up to marketing companies to come up with a "convenient and acceptable product to provide the public."
