Progestin May Hold Key to Male Birth Control

[Guest guest]

It's not bad enough to screw with women's biology -

let's do the men now. Plus, does anyone really think you could depend on

a man to take " birth control " when they're not the ones who get

pregnant? Remember those male " birth control " pills that came

out many years ago? One of the reasons they didn't work, is they found

men wouldn't take them consistently....

Lynn

Study: Progestin May Hold Key to Male Birth

ControlTuesday, March 25, 2008

 

 

 

Researchers say a male birth control is possible combining two

hormones, one of which is used in female birth control.

A

 

contraceptive containing the hormones testosterone and progestin has

been shown to safely and effectively suppress sperm production in most

men, according to a new study.

 

Click here to watch Dr. Manny talk about male birth control.

Researchers say the combination of testosterone and progestin, a

synthetic form of the hormone progesterone, worked better and faster to

suppress than testosterone alone, according to a

study

that will be published in the May issue of the Journal of Clinical

Endocrinology & Metabolism.

" It is possible to suppress sperm output to concentrations that are

comparable with reliable

 

contraception in most, but not all men, " said associate

professor Peter Y. Liu of the University of Sydney, Australia, and lead

author of the study, in a statement. " The rate of suppression is

comparable to that achieved after a vasectomy. "

The contraceptive effects of testosterone and progestin would be

reversible, according to researchers.

Testosterone and other male hormones act as

 

contraceptives by creating negative feedback in a man’s reproductive

system, suppressing the production of sperm, according to the study.

Researchers analyzed all published male hormonal contraceptive studies

from 1990 to 2006 with durations of at least three months.

In a total of 30 studies, 1,756 men between the ages of 18 and 51 were

treated with different preparations of testosterone, with or without

progestin.

While testosterone is the primary male

sex

hormone, progestin is used in combination with estrogen for female

contraception and occurs naturally in females as progesterone.

" Progestin co-administered with testosterone increased both the rate

and extent of suppression, " Liu said. " It also may make

long-term hormonal contraception safer by reducing the dose of

testosterone needed for maintenance contraception. "

The researchers also found that Caucasian men suppressed sperm output

faster, but not as completely, as non-Caucasians. Younger men with lower

natural testosterone levels had faster suppression, but the differences

were relatively small, the study found.

copied from:

 

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,341279,00.html