Getting ready together
40% of infertility involves a male factor
You do not have to carry this alone
When infertility comes up, the conversation often centres on the woman. But in about 40% of cases the male partner is the cause or part of it.
That is why testing usually starts with both partners at once — not the woman first and the man only if nothing turns up.
It starts with one semen analysis
The first test for a man is a semen analysis. It looks at how many sperm there are, their shape, and how they move. It is simpler and less invasive than most of the tests done for women.
Depending on the result, hormone blood tests or an ultrasound of the scrotum may follow.
The common causes
What usually turns up
The most common one is a problem with the sperm cells themselves and how they work. Many of these can be treated or worked around.
What can actually be changed
What the research says
To be honest with you: the evidence that lifestyle changes improve fertility is still not strong. They clearly help your overall health, but do not let them become a reason to put off testing.
Things that do not help
Common beliefs
Does age matter for men too?
Semen measurements start to slip a little after 35. Actual fertility, though, does not appear to change noticeably until around 50.
It is gentler than the decline on the female side, but far less predictable. Age alone is not a reason to relax or to worry.
How LunaCat can help
Settings › Share with a partner
When your fertile window and your logs are visible to your partner too, it stops being "the thing she keeps track of". You choose what to share, item by item.
Go to that first appointment together if you can. A semen analysis can usually be arranged right there.
This article is for reference. Decisions about your body belong with your doctor.
Varicocele — seen in about 40% of men with fertility problems
No sperm at all — about 15% of infertile men
A blockage in the path sperm travels — 10 to 20%
Tobacco, marijuana, heavy drinking, illegal drugs — lower sperm count and movement
Obesity — linked to lower sperm count and quality
High blood pressure — changes the shape of sperm
Heavy physical labour and taking several medicines at once — reduce sperm count
Switching underwear type helps — it is not related to infertility
Saving up for "the day" — going more than 5 days is actually worse
Lubricant makes no difference — water-based ones can badly slow sperm down
Sources
- Possible Causes of Male Infertility — NICHD (National Institutes of Health)
- Lifestyle and Environmental Factors and Infertility in Females and Males — NICHD (National Institutes of Health)
- Optimizing natural fertility: a committee opinion — ASRM, 2022
- Evaluating Infertility — ACOG