Lifestyle And Male Infertility

Newton said several years ago “every action has a reaction”, and this could not be more accurate. In the actual world we live in, the lifestyle that we practice represent all that happens to our body, inside and out. What surrounds us has a direct or an indirect impact in our lives, affecting us for better or worst. Our jobs, relationships, routines, physical exercises, diets, genetics, etc. have something to do with our actual state. The appearance of male infertility can also be explained by these, but more important, these conditions can be prevented by just making some lifestyle changes.

Studies like the one developed by personnel from the Department of Urology of the Weill Cornell Medicine College in New York discussed the increasing attention to primary and secondary prevention of male infertility through modifiable lifestyle factors, evaluating diet, physical activity, body habitus, among other factors.

The study based its findings on the fact that diverse theories and investigations have emerged implicating consumption of saturated fats, extremes of body mass index, high-intensity exercise, and pesticide exposure as detrimental to male fertility. Researchers found that semen quality and birth outcomes were benefited by a balanced dietary fat intake, moderated physical activity, and the management of a healthy body habitus.

A systematic review was made and published in 2018 in the Arab Journal of Urology, gathering information of several studies that discussed the association of principally male infertility with lifestyle factors such as alcohol intake, smoking cigarettes, use of illicit drugs, dietary practices, obesity, psychological stress, advanced paternal age, among others like intense cycling training, testicular heat stress, lack of sleep, and radiation of electromagnetic from use of hand phone.

The review concluded that these lifestyle factors and its negative impact on male fertility could be mostly overcome by behavior modification and better lifestyle choices. An increase in couple education could also enhance awareness and recognition of the possible impact of these factors.

An important factor for mentioning is the fact that the actual human being is subject of tremendous psychological stress. We are used to live in a world where people become easily stressed. In fact, stress is so common nowadays that people usually think it is something normal. The reality is that stress is not a beneficial thing for our health, it doesn’t only affect our body, but also our mind. Of course, fertility does not escape from stress.

A theory explains that our body can prevent conception from happening during stressful events due to the release of stress hormones such as cortisol, adrenaline, and catecholamines. The increase in these hormones´ blood levels is capable of inhibiting the release of the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH), the responsible for the release of sex hormones, reducing sperm count and libido. If this gets chronic, which is very common nowadays, it turns into a disorder called Stress-Induced Reproductive Dysfunction. Now you understand why there is a honeymoon after marriage, holiday may reduce stress and improve chances of conception.