Be a Man: Talk about Male Contraception
By Katherine Mae M. Lopez
ALMOST 89 million people currently live in the Philippines, as revealed by the 2007 Census. Although it showed the lowest population growth rate since the 1960s, the number is still alarming given the already congested Metro Manila and looming food crisis. If the population continues to grow, sooner or later, we will find ourselves competing for resources such as food and land on which to build our homes.
In almost every discussion on overpopulation almost always, the issue of contraception and birth control, as a solution to retard the growth rate comes up . Women can choose from a variety of contraceptive methods available to them – from birth control pills to intrauterine devices (IUDs). Men, on the other hand, are left with the two most popular methods of male contraception: condoms and vasectomy.
A 2005 research made by the United States Agency for International Development about male involvement in family planning says that “including men in family planning programs can improve contraceptive acceptance, continuation, client satisfaction and efficacy.” Moreover, male involvement in family planning reinforces a partnership between the male and the female in a matter that concerns them both.
Vasectomy
One of the contraceptive methods available to men is vasectomy. “It is a semi-permanent form of contraception, and almost always 100 percent effective if it is properly done,” says Dr. Dante P. Dator, chair of the Urology Department in National Kidney Transplant Institute (NKTI). The goal of vasectomy, he adds, is zoospermia, or to have zero sperm.
In a vasectomy, Dator explains that the vas deferens, the tube that carries the sperm from the testicle to the ejaculatory duct, is cut.
Dator says that there are some cases wherein the male underwent vasectomy, but the partner still got pregnant. He explains that this is because the couple engaged in sexual intercourse a few days after the vasectomy was done. “That’s why about one month after the procedure, we do a sperm count,” says Dator.
Other methods
Dator says other methods for male contraception, such as the male pill and the oral tablets, are still in their experimental stage and they are not yet available commercially.
The male pill is a hormone that is supposed to block the sperm, Dator explains. It is either in injectable form or an implant, he adds. On the other hand, oral tablets make the muscles of the vas deferens contract.
But Dator says the problem with these methods are that they are not reliable, not 100 percent effective and there is no assurance of safety.
Meanwhile, No Scalpel Vasectomy (NSV) is also another method of male contraception. Dator explains that this is done by palpating the vas deferens and tying it off. “It is reliable by those who are trained to do it,” says Dator.
Are Pinoy men ready?
A 1993 survey among spouses in the Philippines about their views of contraception revealed that 73 percent of husbands in the country “strongly approves” of contraception. On the other hand, the 2006 Family Planning Survey showed that vasectomy has a 10.4 percent prevalence rate, while condom use is prevalent by 2.8 percent.
Dator thinks that Filipino men are ready for male contraception but they are not open to it. “Yes they are ready in a sense that they are aware of the problems of overpopulation, but they are not open because they fear that it will decrease their libido,” he explains, adding that the latter is not true because there is no relation between vasectomy and maintaining an erection.
Contributor Katherine Mae M. Lopez is a Journalism student from the University of the Philippines.
