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I looked into the backstory of male birth control. Turns out, it's a racist, sexist mess.

There once was a study about male birth control that made everyone freak out.

You know the study I'm talking about, right? The one where a handful of dudes took male birth control, and they got all sad and bloaty, and then most of them quit the whole thing altogether.The one that recently spawned dozens of articles making fun of those dudes' fragile masculinity.

In the study, which ran from 2008 to 2011, 266 monogamously committed guys in 10 different countries tried out a sperm-suppressing injection that looked to be 98% effective. In the end, 7.5% of the guys who took the male birth control dropped out for maybe experiencing side effects similar to women who take birth control. The study was also really tragic because it might have permanently sterilized a guy, and some of the subjects attempted or died from self-harm.


Photo via iStock.

As a dude who would happily take birth control, I have some thoughts about this study and our response to it. Because there's a lot more going on here than it sounds like, and we need to talk about, well, all of it.

First, just to get this out of the way, this study was total crap.

Dr. Jen Gunter, an OB-GYN and, yes, a woman, runs through the study in detail on her blog, and suffice to say: The parameters behind it were a bust. It just wasn’t worth continuing.

The sample size was a mess: There were 320 guys at the start of the study, but that number dropped to 266 before the depression-bloaty-acne issues (plus 1,500 other side effects) came up. By the time it ended in 2011, the study was down to 111 subjects.

"Trust me, I'm a doctor." SMDH. Photo by Manoocher Deghati/AFP/Getty Images.

They also didn't control for consistency across the different testing locations. They hadn't screened participants for mental health or in any way that would allow them to measure their emotionality. So when they realized, for example, that most of the adverse side effects were coming out of Indonesia, they had no idea if that was cultural, dietary, or tied to the meds.

On top of that, the Food and Drug Administrationrequires 20,000 menstrual cycles' worth of safety data for women. But since men don't cycle, no one has determined how long men's birth control would need to be tested to be deemed safe.

Coupled with the difficulty of establishing placebo controls for contraceptives (giving someone a sugar pill and telling them it's fine to have unprotected sex is generally frowned upon), the potential rewards of this particular study were really, really unreliable.

Well, guess we're back to the ol' go-to! Photo by William B. Plowman/Getty Images.

The anger behind the findings of this study is totally valid, though, because of the shoddy history behind women’s birth control.

It turns out, birth control studies have almost always been deplorable and rooted in a very deep history of gendered medicine and racist abuse.

The short version of the story: Puerto Rican women and asylum inmates were forced to participate in early trials for female birth control pills in 1955. In fact, in Puerto Rico, where contraception and abortion were legal and available but forced sterilization was also occurring, the researchers specifically sought out the "ovulating intelligent" in medical school, where the trials became a required part of their curriculum. If they dropped out or refused to participate, they'd be expelled from school.

Photo by H. William Tetlow/Fox Photos/Getty Images.

Later, when the drug was tested under slightly more humane circumstances, there were still some big problems: The researchers enticed women with the "no pregnancy" part while conveniently leaving out the details about the potential side effects of the pills. If the recent male trial that got everyone up in arms was bad by modern standards (which it was), then these adverse effects were monstrous: 17% of participants had serious complaints, three people may or may not have died as a result, and one of the researchers even straight up admitted that there were "too many side reactions to be generally acceptable."

But they stuck with it anyway, using a dosage that was 10 times higher than necessary for contraception, and got the thing approved.

Photo by Evening Standard/Getty Images.

The progress and development of the pill over the last 50 years was only possible because women fought to make it better once it was out in the world, despite its nightmarish origin story.

So yes, you are absolutely right to be outraged when it comes to this study: Women have carried the brunt of birth control side effects for way too long. While this one recent male study was crap, so were many that came before it that were much worse for women.

Apparently scientists did briefly consider making a birth control pill for men just before the Puerto Rican trials, by the way, but they figured dudes couldn't handle the mild shrinkage and that women were better suited to silently suffer through the side effects because of their higher pain tolerance.

That's just further proof that women have been putting up with this kind of shit for long enough, and we shouldn't have waited so long to start developing a male birth control pill. (Of course, if we had started earlier, who knows how many more blatant human rights violations would have occurred? Grr.)

Photo by Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images.

The good news is that a majority of men are totally on board with using a pill to keep our swimmers on the sidelines.

We don't even mind the side effects! Really! In fact, 75% of the participants in this particular study and their respective partners said they were down to keep doing it.

In another study of 9,000 men in nine different countries, 57% were open to popping a (theoretical) pill. For comparison, about 17.5% of women ages 15-44 in the U.S. use oral contraceptives. So the odds there aren't bad. Lots of us guys are down with this — I promise.

Photo by Evening Standard/Getty Images.

There are lots of other people working on alternative forms of male birth control, too.

Gandarusa is an Indonesian herb that produces an enzyme that basically prevents individual sperm from making it all the way to egg. It apparently originated as a stress reliever with temporary infertility as a possible side effect.

The "clean sheets pill" does exactly what it sounds like: It stops you from actually spillin' yer stuff but still keeps the sensation of an orgasm otherwise intact.

There's also Vasalgel, which is not a pill, per se, but a gel injection into the vas deferens to keep the sperm out of your semen. A similar process involves injecting gold nanorods into your testicles, which, um, probably makes for an interesting pickup line, at the very least. Ahem.

BE A HERO LIKE THIS GUY. Photo via iStock.

Sex, contraception, and pregnancy are all shared responsibilities. They are consensual.

So, dudes, let’s get moving. You want to help push an actual male birth control pill through? Talk to your doctor. Sign up for a study. Talk about it, yell it from the rooftops, maybe try screaming it in bed if that's your thing. (Hey, you never know until you try.)

A lot of guys already know this, but if you don't, here it is: We all need to do a better job for working toward more equitable solutions, and not just for birth control. So let's make that clear to the women in our lives, and let’s move along from this crap study and design some better ones. It’s time to get shit done.

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Three women, three MS journeys: How multiple sclerosis looks different for everyone

Gina, Nathalie and Helga share their reactions to being diagnosed with MS and how they stay informed and positive in the face of ever-changing symptoms.

Courtesy of Sanofi

Helga, Nathalie and Gina all have MS, and their experiences show how differently the disease can manifest.

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It’s been 155 years since neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot gave the first lecture on a mysterious progressive illness he called “multiple sclerosis.” Since then, we’ve learned a lot. We know MS causes the immune system to attack healthy tissue, including damaging the brain and spinal cord. Resulting symptoms can be debilitating and include fatigue, blurred vision, memory problems and weakness. Huge advancements in our understanding of MS and its underlying causes, as well as treatment advances, have been made in the past few decades, but MS remains a complex and unpredictable reality for the 2.8 million+ people diagnosed around the world.

Ironically, the only real constant for people living with MS is change. There’s no set pattern or standard progression of the disease, so each person’s experience is unique. Some people with MS have mild symptoms that worsen slowly but sometimes improve, while others can have severe symptoms that drastically alter their daily lives.

All people with MS share some things in common, however, such as the need to stay informed on the ever-evolving research, find various lines of support and try to remain hopeful as they continue living with the disease.

To better understand what navigating life with MS really looks like, three women shared their MS stories with us. Their journeys demonstrate how MS can look different for different people and interestingly, how the language used to talk about the disease can greatly impact how people understand their realities.

woman with horse, woman riding horseGina loves riding her horse, Benita.Courtesy of Sanofi

Gina—Hamburg, Germany (diagnosed with relapsing multiple sclerosis in 2017)

When her youngest son was 4 months old, Gina started having problems with her eye. She’d soon learn she was experiencing optic neuritis—her first symptom of MS.

“Immediately after the diagnosis, I looked up facts on MS because I didn’t know anything about it,” Gina says. “And as soon as I knew what could really happen with this disease, I actually got scared.”

As her family’s primary income provider, she worried about how MS would impact her ability to work as a writer and editor. Her family was afraid she was going to end up in a wheelchair. However, for now, Gina’s MS is managed well enough that she still works full-time and is able to be active.

“When I tell somebody that I have MS, they often don't believe me the first time because I don't fulfill any stereotypes,” she says.

Overwhelmed by negative perspectives on living with MS, Gina sought support in the online MS community, which she found to be much more positive.

“I think it’s important to use as many positive words as you can when talking about MS.” It’s important to be realistic while also conveying hope, she says. “MS is an insidious disease that can cause many bad symptoms…that can be frightening, and you can't gloss over it, either.”

To give back to the online community that helped her so much, Gina started a blog to share her story and help others trying to learn about their diagnosis.

Though she deals with fatigue and cognitive dysfunction sometimes, Gina stays active swimming, biking, riding horses and playing with her sons, who are now 11 and 6.

Cognitive dysfunction is common in MS, with over half of people affected. It can impact memory, attention, planning, and word-finding. As with many aspects of MS, some people experience mild changes, while others face more challenges.

Gina says that while there’s still a lot of education about MS needed, she feels positive about the future of MS because there’s so much research being done.

woman in wheelchair holding medal, woman rowingNathalie is an award-winning rower with multiple international titles.Courtesy of Sanofi

Nathalie — Pennes Mirabeau, France (diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis in 2002)

Nathalie was a teenager and a competitive athlete when she noticed her first symptoms of MS, but it would take four years of “limbo” before she was diagnosed.

“Ultimately, the diagnosis was more of a relief, than a shock,” she says. “Because when you have signs and you don’t know why, it’s worse than knowing, in the end, what you have.”

However, learning more about the disease—and the realities of disease progression—scared her.

“That glimpse of the future was direct and traumatic,” she says. Her neurologist explained that the disease evolves differently for everyone, and her situation might end up being serious or very mild. So, she decided to stop comparing herself to others with MS.

She said to herself, “We’ll see what happens, and you’ll manage it bit by bit.”

By 2005, Nathalie’s MS had progressed to the point of needing a wheelchair. However, that has not dampened her competitive spirit.

Nathalie began her international rowing career in 2009 and has won multiple world titles, including two Paralympic medals—silver in London and bronze in Tokyo. Now, at 42, she still trains 11 times a week. Fatigue can be a problem, and sometimes hard workouts leave her with muscle stiffness and shaking, but she credits her ongoing sports career for helping her feel in tune with her body’s signals.

“Over the years, I’ve learned to listen to my body, letting my body guide when I need to stop and take breaks,” she says.

Nathalie explains that she used to only look backwards because of the initial shock of her diagnosis. In time, she stopped thinking about what she couldn’t do anymore and focused on her future. She now lives in the following mindset: “Even when doors close, don’t miss out on those that open.” Instead of focusing on what she can’t do, she focuses on the opportunities she still has. Right now, this includes her training for the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris, where she will compete for another rowing medal.

“I only go forward,” she says. “Well, I try, anyway…It’s easy to say, it’s not always easy to do. But that’s what I try to do.”

woman exiting water after swimming, woman with great daneHelga's Great Dane has become a helpful and beloved companion.Courtesy of Sanofi

Helga—Johannesburg, South Africa (diagnosed with relapsing multiple sclerosis in 2010)

When Helga first started having balance issues and numbness in her feet, she chalked it up to her training as a runner. But when the numbness moved to her face, she knew something was wrong. She never guessed it was MS.

“When I was diagnosed, I felt completely overwhelmed and clueless,” Helga says. “I felt that I had nowhere near enough information. I did not know anything about the disease…I had no idea that it was going to be a process of continually monitoring and adjusting your lifestyle.”

In the beginning, Helga’s symptoms developed slowly, and she didn’t appear ill to others. She was even able to run for a few years after her diagnosis, but she couldn’t do marathons anymore, and she began to fall frequently due to balance issues and right-foot dragging. Then her cognition issues became more problematic, especially in her job as a trainer in a printing company.

“My executive function, decision-making and short-term memory were affected to the point that I was eventually medically unfit for work,” she says. She stopped working in 2017.

However, she didn’t stop living life. Even though she could no longer run, she continued to swim competitively. She got a Great Dane puppy and trained him as a service dog to help her walk. She also serves as vice chair of the patient support organization Multiple Sclerosis South Africa, and she advises others who have been diagnosed to join a patient advocacy group as soon as possible to get reliable information and meet others with MS.

Helga says she is “hopeful” about the future of MS. “I must say that I am so grateful that we have all the new medications available, because my life would not be the same if it wasn't for that,” she adds.

Part of how she manages her MS is by looking at the positives.

“If I could tell the world one thing about MS, it would be that MS is an incurable disease of the nervous system, but it's also the greatest teacher of valuing your health, family, friends, and managing change in your life,” she says. “My life is diversified in a way that I never, ever thought it would, and MS has been honestly the greatest teacher.”

Each MS journey is unique – with each person impacted experiencing different struggles, successes, and feelings as they manage this unpredictable disease. But the common thread is clear – there is a critical need for information, support, and hope. We are proud to participate in World MS Day and share these incredible stories of living life while living with MS. To learn more about MS, go to https://www.sanofi.com/why-words-really-matter-when-it-comes-to-multiple-sclerosis.

MAT-GLB-2301642-v1.0-05/2023

This article was sponsored by Sanofi. Participants were compensated when applicable.

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