Oral sterilisation and male contraceptives

[walfin]

Has the first been thought of before? I know the second one has.

Unfortunately, it seems like the second isn't going to be finished anytime soon.

Oral sterilisation would save a lot of the trouble of going through a vasectomy or tubal ligation. Why can't we have some medicine that stops sperm/egg production?

Considering that many in the developed world would want to stop having children after they've had enough (pun intended), and the huge cost savings for population control in the developing world, I think this might be a good thing to develop. The possibility of abuse by dictators who believe in eugenics, though, may be a potential ethical problem.

 

[Cognisant]

The testiculi don't produce sperm on demand, there's a storage phase involved, which makes the eradication of sperm via orally administered drug, to the extent that it could be considered a reliable form of contraception, neigh impossible.

If anything why not have a vasectomy?
I'm fairly sure it's already possible to have sperm created artificially directly from one's own cells or DNA, so where's the loss, heck if anything I would find it reassuring to know I can't father any offspring unless I specifically want to.

 

[walfin]

The problem is not permanent sterilisation. The problem is the trouble.

Won't it be better if a man or a woman could just pop a pill to get sterilised? Instead of having to go through surgery.

 

[Cognisant]

Oooh, you mean a permeant sterilisation pill for men.

Actually I'm 75% sure there's some radiography thing of some sort that can quickly & painlessly sterilise men, although if I remember correctly it only works for 'x' number of years because apparently evolution favours the near-impossible-to-sterilize male.

 

[warryer]

That doesn't sound like a good idea to me. We already have those sick people out there that drop a roofie in a girl's drink. This is a door that I don't think needs to be opened.

Unless of course artificial sperm production does exist. I've never heard of it.