Guys :6 Things You Do That Destroys Your Sperm

Something like 40-50% of infertility cases are because of an issue with the male. The [relatively] good news is that men’s insides are considerably less complicated than women’s (my doctors words, not mine), so can sometimes be fixed without too much fuss. I offer no guarantees of course, but this is the sort of thing I studied for months when we were preparing for our IVF, so with this list at least you know what to look out for.

Smoking

Smoking can effect sperm motility and sperm DNA.

It will come as no surprise that doctors tell you to stop smoking if you have taken issue with your genitals, or at least their (lack of) performance. In all honesty I haven’t read the studies but there are plenty out there that suggest smoking affects your sperm motility, and sperm DNA. No one can tell you to stop smoking, so I will leave that one with you.

Heat

I am cheating a little bit with this as a lot of the things on this list relate to heating of the genitals. The simple fact is that your scrotum is on the outside of your body for very good reason – to separate it from the rest of the body, and away from your core temperature. In other words – don’t sleep with a boiling hot water bottle on your ‘nads’ every night – if you ever thought that was a good idea.

Laptops

The heat from a laptop could have an adverse affect on sperm motility and quality.

Following on from the heat theme, there is apparently a direct correlation in laptop usage and sperm quality. At 98^o the genitals cease production, and this, like any modern day strike, can have an effect lasting months afterwards. Put your laptop on a table.

Fatty Foods

It isn’t the foods per se, as the effect it has on you – obesity. One burger won’t do any long term damage to your sperm, but if you regularly eat fatty foods, and put weight on, that is when sperm starts to be affected. If you are unaware, obesity actually increases oestrogen – a hormone more at home in a female’s body. It is also reported to lower sperm counts.

Varicocele

This is an abnormal dilation of the vein in testes. I know about this through experience, and again this comes under the ‘heat’ umbrella heading. My doctor described it as a radiator sitting on your testes. It also can affect blood flow. An embolisation is a procedure to tackle this, so if you suffer from a varicocele, then talk to your doctor.

Alcohol

Alcohol can lower sperm count and testosterone.

As with most things, the key with alcohol is moderation. Regular consumption of significant levels of alcohol can have an effect on testosterone and lower sperm counts. Just like smoking however, I don’t want to sound like a nanny state, so will leave it up to you to heed any advice.

So there you have it. Six things that can have a negative effect on your sperm. There are many other things that could be the cause of any male infertility, so if you have any worries whatsoever, go and see your doctor. This blog post does not constitute any form of diagnosis, but of course, you know that. Good luck.