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The Best Birth Control In The World Is For Men

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Re: The Best Birth Control In The World Is For Men

#91

Post by Lazare »

d2vid wrote: post #2

My girlfriend told me about this because she gets blood clots from hormonal birth control and we wish this was an option today. You should complete this survey like I did if you are interested: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/TSKSKGM

My fiancée cannot use hormonal birth control for the same reason. Instead, she has a copper based IUD. Your girlfriend has probably considered this already, but if not I strongly recommend looking into it. They're not perfect, but they're very good.

(There are only two real risks/side effects: Heavier bleeding, and it's important not to get Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (which is another way of saying, it's even more important than normal not to get STDs. If she can handle the first, and is in a monogamous relationship - or at least, always uses condoms with people who aren't guaranteed STD free - then neither issue is severe.)

Mind you, vasalgel sounds even better to me. :)

Re: The Best Birth Control In The World Is For Men

#92

Post by chc »

esrauch wrote: post #72
natasham25 wrote: post #54

I've asked my guy friends whether they would get this procedure, and none of them will. Guys expect women to mess with their bodies, but are not willing to make the sacrifice themselves when it comes down to it, even though this is more safe and harmless than pumping your body with hormones every day.

I would rather pump my body full of hormones than have invasive surgery. You wouldn't?

This is only barely more invasive than giving blood. You clearly haven't tried the latter if you would prefer it over the former.

Re: The Best Birth Control In The World Is For Men

#93

Post by MartinCron »

eru wrote: post #76
MartinCron wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a horrifying thought. I'm planning on doing "the talk" with my children starting with a latex condom and working outwards. "Sex is a beautiful thing shared between two people and a latex condom from a reliable brand"...

> ... and a latex condom from a reliable brand"... Aren't they all required by law to be reliable?

I have no idea what the current regulatory climate for condom manufacturing is.

I just know that I'm going to trust an established brand that's sold by the box in the drug store over a no-name brand sold singly from a vending machine in the bathroom of a bowling alley.

Re: The Best Birth Control In The World Is For Men

#94

Post by neutronicus »

natasham25 wrote: post #54

I've asked my guy friends whether they would get this procedure, and none of them will. Guys expect women to mess with their bodies, but are not willing to make the sacrifice themselves when it comes down to it, even though this is more safe and harmless than pumping your body with hormones every day.

Psh. If I can afford this it is 100% on.

Re: The Best Birth Control In The World Is For Men

#95

Post by dfc »

angersock wrote: post #31
dfc wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thank you. I was a little surprised that my comment got downvoted so much. Maybe this is due to the low percentage of female HNers? Its as if most people think that the pill would have been as revolutionary if it were for men instead of women.

Erm, I think there may have been a bit of a misunderstanding in my attempt at some dry humor. :( I intended to imply disagreement with your claim, mostly due to the one-sided nature of it (as my parent reply suggested). I imagine the downvotes are due to the fact that your phrasing seems to imply that the male should have no say in the matter. It's not that women should not have control over the process (perhaps even…

I reread your comment in light of the dry humor. But I am a little confused. A dry sarcastic reading of:

"Because men clearly are not as invested in the possible rearing of a child. Clearly."

Does not seem to mesh with this:

"It's not that women should not have control over the process (perhaps even most of it)"

I think men (especially "honorable/good" men) are invested in the possibility of a pregnancy/child, but they are definitely not equally invested/impacted by a pregnancy/child.

Re: The Best Birth Control In The World Is For Men

#96

Post by Alex3917 »

streptomycin wrote: post #56
ianferrel wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn't most non-condom birth control primarily intended for couples? All the other types prevent pregnancy only. Condoms prevent disease as well.

In theory, maybe. In practice, no. Condoms are way out of fashion these days among the young sexually active crowd.

"In 2009, the percentage of sexually active high school students who reported using a condom the most recent time they had sexual intercourse was 61%, up from 46% in 1991. In 2009, 69% of high school boys and 54% of high school girls used a condom at last sexual intercourse."

http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus10.pdf#073

Re: The Best Birth Control In The World Is For Men

#97

Post by dfc »

paulhauggis wrote: post #65
streptomycin wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In theory, maybe. In practice, no. Condoms are way out of fashion these days among the young sexually active crowd.

You would think after the aids scare of the 80s and 90s this wouldn't be the case.

It would not be the case with people that were alive and mature enough at the time to be cognizant of the situation. I think the OP is referring to people who were not around at the time...

Re: The Best Birth Control In The World Is For Men

#98

Post by spydum »

busted wrote: post #20
spydum wrote: post #3

I would be concerned about forgetting to get it redone on year 11.. then surprise! From the sounds of it though, you'd still have the same side effects of a traditional vasectomy: sperm granuloma. So one is mostly permanent (reconnection can happen, though super rare).. and one is only good for a few years? Yeah.. I think I'd wait for the first 10 years to see the efficacy.

I don't see how it sounds like you'd get a granuloma. It sounds like the sperm are destroyed as they pass through the vas deferens but are still washed out as they normally would be.

Ah, I did not read up apparently. I thought this was essentially gluing the vas shut with a polymer that was reversible. According to the wikipedia entry, they don't know the exact reason it works (what?!). Very interesting.. I had overlooked that.

Re: The Best Birth Control In The World Is For Men

#99

Post by GFischer »

d2vid wrote: post #2

My girlfriend told me about this because she gets blood clots from hormonal birth control and we wish this was an option today. You should complete this survey like I did if you are interested: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/TSKSKGM

I guess she already did, but have you tried switching pills? (after asking a gynaecologist I guess)

My girlfirend reacted very badly to a well-known and tested brand, however she seems to do much better with a local-brand product with different composition (started that one a few months ago).

Re: The Best Birth Control In The World Is For Men

#100

Post by oodalolly »

dfc wrote: post #86
Lazare wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of course, it also lowers sex drive[1], while causing weight gain, cancer[3], and heart problems[4]. For historical reasons IUDs are uncommon in the US. This is unfortunate. They aren't perfect, but they are relatively cheap, extremely reliable, and remarkably safe. Depending on the type, they also have few or no side effects. Worth considering... [1]: This one arguably isn't a health benefit, but in many ways it's h…

This is news to me. I have never heard/read anything that casts hormonal birth control in such a negative light. Do you have any pointers to more information? It has always been my understanding that hormone based birth control was a huge win for women's health...

There are thousands of forums with women discussing all the negative side effects of birth control. Off the top of my head, you can visit http://iud-divas.livejournal.com/, which is women who are considering/have IUDs, and many of them report the negative (often severely so) effects of previous hormonal birth control usage. Otherwise you can visit bedsider.org, which talks about side effects for all birth control methods.

The pill is an incredible win for women's health. Unfortunately, not all women can use it effectively, safely, or comfortably.

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