Franka Frei, the young German author, attempted a variety of contraceptive techniques and was generally disappointed. She wonders, for her new initiative, what resources are available for guys. Testicle warmers, gels, and silicone rings are all available.
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| Franka Frei |
Franka Frei was born in 1995 in Cologne, raised in Salzburg, and now resides in Berlin-Neukölln. She studied gender studies and applied media. She travels the world to meet other menstruation activists for her book "Period is Political (Periode ist politisch) . Goldmann will release her latest book "Overdue" on April 20th, 2023.
Ms. Frei, for your book, you spoke with specialists all around the world to learn why, other from condoms and vasectomy, there is no standard contraceptive technique for males. What surprised you the most throughout your research?
- That there are contraceptive options for males that they can use on their own. Out of a sense of obligation and camaraderie. Despite the fact that they don't have to.
For Example?
-Four engineers in Butzbach, Hesse, Germany, created a gadget that only burns the outside area of the testicles for a few minutes. They've tried it on themselves, and it's absolutely painless - and enough to render them infertile for the following six weeks. An app was designed for this purpose, allowing anybody to quickly make a spermiogram at home. This helps you to determine whether a guy is currently infertile.
It's hardly news that heat paralyzes sperm. Why hasn't this been done for a long time?
-And it takes all of us to push a new strategy like this through. Many more guys, I'm sure, would perform contraceptive work if they knew how. In the last two years, France has seen a surge in contraceptive advocacy.
In Paris, I met guys who utilized a contraceptive technique that was not well recognized in the United States. A silicone ring draws the testicles closer to the body, causing them to warm up to body temperature by one to two degrees. Hot water baths were used successfully in studies as early as the 1950s. Yet, many doctors are still ignorant of this strategy.
Men cannot become pregnant, although women can. Why should women rely on males for contraception?
Of course, no one should be compelled to do so. According to a Dutch poll, over 90% of women in stable relationships would rely on their spouse to use contraception.
Researchers presented a method to immobilize sperm by inhibiting a particular protein in the journal Nature Communications in February. This transitory effect has only been tested on mice thus far. We already have a plethora of techniques, and this is another another. However, we are at a medical-technological crossroads.
What do you mean?
The risks and side effects of a certain procedure will be evaluated differently in persons with sperm than in those with uteri. Masculinity role models in society continue to obstruct our progress. As a result, the pharmaceutical business has little incentive in investing.
Numerous clinical investigations must be completed before a commercial product may be developed. Research into a male contraception technique resembles a dilapidated structure. Nothing will change until we actively demand them.
Why is it critical that males have access to contraception as well?
Long-term contraception is a fantastic invention. Nevertheless, it is not free. Women pay in terms of money, time, and health consequences. They are not the only ones who are concerned about avoiding unplanned pregnancies. Guys are likewise concerned about becoming fathers inadvertently. The way we approach contraception is out of date.
How did your personal contraceptive story begin, Ms. Frei?
When I was 13, I had my first boyfriend, and my mother viewed it as her duty to step in and protect me from the worst-case scenario: a teenage pregnancy.
That sounds understandable
Absolutely. She made the correct decision. Mom drove me to a family planning clinic, where they gave me the pill and promised me larger breasts, lustrous hair, and smooth skin.
And how did you find the pill?
I was going through puberty. My physique and personality were both still growing. Therefore it's difficult to say if my weight gain or mood swings were caused by the pill or were simply part of my maturation.
My period was entirely screwed up after I stopped using the pill, and I experienced serious skin problems. My doctor determined that my body needed to catch up with the years of repressed pubertal changes.
Many women do not rethink their contraception strategy until they are older. They, too?
When I was in my early twenties, the pill had fallen out of favor with many around me. I resorted to a vaginal hormone ring to avoid negative effects. This left me feeling listless and listless, almost bored of existence. It took me a long to realize that synthetic hormones, no matter how they are supplied, had an effect on the brain.
Ultimately, I chose the copper spiral. Yet putting it on was the most agonizing sensation I'd ever had. I ended up in the emergency department a week later with severe bleeding. Contraception is rarely enjoyable. I believe that the widespread late questioning is also due to the fact that we are given the impression that we are oh so educated.
Few women are aware that they may take the pill without delay and so avoid the false bleeding, which is not a true menstruation.
This realization came to me while working on my first book, "Periode ist politik," which dealt with the menstruation taboo. Menstrual product producers are the only ones that gain from this intentionally produced withdrawal bleeding.
There were even magazine covers in the 1990s that said, "Here comes the pill for males." Why isn't it there anymore?
Because insufficient finances were made available for it. Tests and research are costly, and there is little sense of urgency. For more than 40 years, it has been predicted that we are on the verge of a breakthrough with a type of pill for males.
But, research has been on the verge of coming to a halt since the last large-scale study was halted twelve years ago. The pharmaceutical business has entirely abandoned research, and I am not aware of any medicine that has made it to market without their assistance.
The danger and reward of creating medications are considered. The potential decrease of libido in women should be considered carefully, although according to the manufacturer, the benefits exceed the drawbacks: Pregnancies are dangerous, conditions like preeclampsia can be fatal, and many women die during childbirth across the world.
This cost-benefit analysis is a significant impediment to the development of equitable contraception. The mere potential of being pregnant is seen as a health concern. Individuals who do not have a uterus, on the other hand, are deemed entirely healthy and risk-free. This effectively eliminates the tolerance limit for negative effects in male contraceptive techniques.
Yet, having a reproductive uterus is not an illness that requires treatment for half of the world's population. This risk-benefit analysis holds down innovation. Men and women 'simply being' reinforces a status quo that makes change difficult.'
The burden of contraception lies on those who are capable of becoming pregnant?
We live in a culture that holds women largely accountable for many aspects of reproduction and tolerates males avoiding this societal obligation.
Putting together contraceptives is a lot of labor. How can males now participate?
Asking how you can get engaged emotionally or financially, dealing with condom sizes, and having the correct supplies on hand when required are all reasonable requests. Funding like the ring might potentially be beneficial to many people – a group from France just received approval for clinical testing.
Contraception for males is part of a just society in which inflexible gender norms are eroding and collapsing because they are harmful to everyone. Coping with reproduction and masculinity can lead to men's emancipation.
This interview was conducted by German journalist Farangies Ghafoori and first appeared on TAGESSPIEGEL.