Falling sperm count is a global phenomenon: Study
An Israeli study has found that sperm count has dropped by 62% in less than 50 years, and the findings have implications for the future of the human race.
Prof. Hagai Levine from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem led the study with prof. Shanna Swan at the Icahn School of Medicine in New York.
The Times of Israel reports that the results are particularly concerning because a low sperm count is considered an indicator of men’s health in general and can indicate an increased risk of testicular cancer and chronic diseases.
Professor Levin’s last study was conducted in 2017. The new study adds several years of statistics and is much broader, covering 53 countries.
The concentration of sperm per milliliter of semen is currently about 50 million – a 52% decrease. What has been considered a low sperm count is 15 million per milliliter, so levels are still above that number.
However, Professor Levine noted that an average of 50 million means that there are many men who have less than 40 million, “fertility that is actually suboptimal”.
The study was published in Human Reproduction Update.
With rates of decline actually accelerating, a reproductive crisis is possible, according to The Guardian.
Professor Richard Sharpe, an expert in male reproductive health at the University of Edinburgh, noted that this was a global problem and said a key finding from the research was that it could be “desperately bad news for a couple’s fertility”.
Here environmental factors are believed to be to blame. Lifestyle factors that contribute to poor health, such as diet, obesity, smoking, and drinking, can also play a role.
Among the chemicals thought to affect sperm quality are bisphenols and dioxins, which are thought to interfere with hormones. Paracetamol and phthalates are also a risk.
Other male disorders, such as penile malformation and undescended testicles, are also rising, and hormone-disrupting chemicals are suspected. The damage occurs in utero as the baby develops.
Paracetamol is also known as acetaminophen – Tylenol. Scientists have warned pregnant women against taking acetaminophen in the past, and paracetamol has been shown to cause a drop in sperm quality in laboratory animals.
Processed foods and fatty foods can be a source of dioxins, phthalates, and bisphenols.
