AVOID saunas and taking hot showers if you want to be a father. That is the frank advice to men from the fertility watchdog in its new guide to having babies published this week.
Men, whose fertility has fallen dramatically in recent years, should try to maximise the amount of sperm they produce by keeping themselves cool. The fall in sperm production has been linked to drinking alcohol.
Up to one in five healthy young men between the ages of 18 and 25 have abnormal sperm counts. Even the sperm they do produce is often of poor quality. In contrast, more than 90% of the sperm of a bull or a ram is normal.
The guide from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority advises men how to boost sperm production: “For maximum sperm production, the testes should be a couple of degrees cooler than the rest of your body. It may help to avoid tight-fitting clothing, saunas and hot showers.”
A spokesman for the HFEA said: “This new guide, along with our website, aims to help people with the decisions they need to make the journey through fertility treatment easier and less confusing.”
Too many hours in the saddle may also affect the fertility of cyclists. Researchers told a European conference last year that cycle training of the intensity undertaken by triathletes has a significant impact on the quality of their sperm. Professor Niels Skakkebaek, of the University of Copenhagen, describes declining levels of male fertility “as important as global warming”.
Article: Sunday Times 30th May 2010
Test your sperm count using the fertilcount male sperm count test