Condoms are a necessary evil. In that, they are both necessary to prevent STIs and unwanted pregnancies, and also, they are pure evil. Nobody likes having sex with a condom — especially men, but women, too. The only people psyched to use them are guys for whom not cumming too quickly is a serious issue. Because you can’t feel anything.
But we endure, because the only thing worse than bad sex is a baby nobody was expecting, and/or a burning sensation around your crotch.
The good news is that there’s hope on the horizon. Researchers at the National Institute of Health have submitted for FDA approval a topical contraceptive gel that allows couples to do away with condoms entirely — that is, if you’re only worried about getting pregnant, not if you’ve got herpes down there.
The gel promises to suppress sperm levels for up to 72 hours after application, which, surprisingly, isn’t on your penis or balls. Instead, guys are directed to apply a half a teaspoon on their arms and shoulders. So your partner doesn’t need to worry about getting dosed.
While there have been alternatives in trials previously, including pills and injectables, this does seem to represent our best hope in the ongoing quest to make male contraceptives a thing. Mainly, because of its ease of use, and because of the 72-hour grace period between applications where the gel is still effective if you’ve forgotten to put it on that day.
This writer, at least, is all for it: Frankly, it’s high time guys share the burden with women who have had to endure the responsibility (not to mention the side effects) of birth control for decades.
A few other things we learned about our bodies today:
- There are more women than men in med school for the first time ever.
- 2018 can’t come fast enough: It was just announced that life expectancy in the U.S. fell this year from 78.7 to 78.6 years…
- …which maybe has something to do with that we’re injecting and drinking ourselves to death at record levels.
- Being single is bad for your health.
- In today’s “no, duh” news, dogs are a baby’s best friend.
Jeff Gross
Jeff Gross is MEL’s senior editor for social media and content marketing. His daily ICYMI column, which chronicles all things meta on the site, is the quickest way to catch up on MEL, and the funniest thing you’ll read all day. Follow him on Twitter.
