You spent so many years trying not to get her pregnant, so
when you finally want to become a dad, you might be surprised to discover that
conceiving isn’t as easy as you may have thought. In fact, 1 in 8 couples have
trouble getting pregnant. And in 1 out of every 3 cases, the problem is on the
guy’s end, according to the national fertility organization Resolve.
“Normal sperm counts have declined in the last several
decades,” says Ajay Nangia, M.B.B.S., a professor of urology at the University
of Kansas Medical Center specializing in male infertility.
Part of that dip could be due to seemingly harmless things
guys do on an everyday basis. Here, 5 common habits that might be messing with
your sperm. (Think your sperm is already in top shape? Check out the 5 signs
your semen is healthy and strong.)
Staying Up Too Late
Turn off Netflix and get to bed: Guys who logged less than 6
hours of sleep per night were 31 percent less likely to get their partners
pregnant than guys who slept for 7 to 8 hours per night, according to a
preliminary study in the journal Fertility & Sterility.
Lack of sleep may lower your production of the hormone
testosterone, which is essential for sperm production, researchers say. (In
fact, here are more effects of low testosterone.)
But too much shuteye isn’t the answer, either: Men who
snoozed for more than 9 hours a night also demonstrated lower levels of
fertility. So shoot for 7 to 8 hours a night—the sweet spot in the study.
Using the Wrong Lube
Popular commercial lubes like K-Y and Astroglide can hamper
your sperm’s motility, or their ability to efficiently swim towards the egg to
fertilize it, a 2014 study in Fertility & Sterility found. The lubes’ thick
consistency may make it difficult for the sperm to move, says Dr. Nangia.
“They’re fine for intercourse [when you’re not trying to get
pregnant], but they can act a bit like a spermicidal barrier,” he says. (Still,
you should never use a lubricant as birth control.)
Plus, they also contain hydrochloric acid, a preservative
that can kill sperm, he says.
Instead, stick with a fertility-friendly lube like PreSeed,
which is less damaging to sperm, the study found. (You might be making other
mistakes with your lube, too.)
Skimping On Fish
Ordering your fair share of fish might save your swimmers.
When Harvard researchers studied the diet and semen quality of 155 men, they
found that guys who ate the most fish—particularly omega-3-rich fish like
salmon or tuna—had higher sperm counts and higher levels of normal, healthy
sperm than those who ate less.
On the flip side, men who ate the most processed meat, like
bacon, hotdogs, and salami, had the lowest sperm counts and the highest levels
of abnormally shaped sperm compared to men who ate the least.
Processed meats might decrease reproductive hormones like
testosterone, while the omega-3 fatty acids in fish promote the formation of
healthier sperm, researchers say.
Guzzling Soda
Guys who drink more than one sugary soda a day have lower
sperm motility than those who rarely or never sip the sweet stuff, a study
published in Human Reproduction found.
Eating or drinking too much sugar can lead to insulin
resistance, a condition where your cells are unable to take glucose from your
blood and use it for energy. This can lead to inflammation, which can hinder
how your sperm moves, the researchers say.
Plus, if your soda habit is making you fat, that could pose
its own problem. Too much fat prompts your body to pump out less testosterone
and more estrogen, which is bad for your fertility, Dr. Nangia says. (To lose
fat fast, try METASHRED EXTREME, the most intense workout program ever created
by Men’s Health.)
Extra fat tissue around your thighs and groin can also raise
the temperature inside your scrotum. That could create a too-warm environment
that’s also bad for your sperm, he says.
Keeping Your Smartphone In Your Pants Pocket
Cell phone exposure may hurt the way your sperm move and decrease
the number that are swimming around, a recent British review of 10 studies
concluded. The radiation emitted from phones could cause DNA damage to sperm.
And the heat from a phone could raise the temperature inside your scrotum and
hamper sperm production, researchers say.
Does that mean you need to ditch your device altogether?
Probably not, Dr. Nangia says. But if you’re concerned, talk with your doctor.
If you have your phone in your pocket all day, every day, it might be worth
finding ways to reduce your exposure, like sticking your phone in your jacket
pocket.
Written by Marygrace Taylor
