Contents:
- Medical Video: Improving Fertility in Men with Poor Sperm Count | UCLA Urology
- What is sperm motility?
- Does poor sperm motility affect male fertility?
- Causes of slow sperm movement
- Treat bad sperm motility
Medical Video: Improving Fertility in Men with Poor Sperm Count | UCLA Urology
Sperm motility is one of the important factors in determining male fertility. This is because sperm need to move through the female reproductive tract to be able to meet and fertilize the egg. So, what if a man has poor sperm motility? Will it affect her fertility? Check out the answer here!
What is sperm motility?
Sperm motility is the ability of sperm to move efficiently in a woman's body. This ability is needed in order to produce a successful pregnancy. Referring to the way sperm swim, motility consists of two types, namely:
- Progressive motility that is when sperm swim in most straight lines or large circles.
- Nonprogressive motility that is, sperm can move but do not make progressive movements or can only swim in a limited circle. The possible movements are only in the form of vibrations or moving in place or making a zigzag trip so that it cannot reach the female reproductive organs.
For sperm to pass through the cervical mucus and fertilize the egg, sperm must have progressive motility of at least 25 micrometers per second. When less than 32 percent of your sperm cells are classified as progressive motility sperm (in other words the remaining 68 percent is nonprogressive), your sperm falls into the category of bad sperm motility or asthenozoospermia.
The motility of poor sperm is divided into three types, namely:
- Slow progressive motility (movement).
- Non-progressive motility marked by movement is less than five micrometers per second.
- There is no sperm movement at all.
To check how your sperm motility is, please see a doctor immediately. The doctor will check the quality of your sperm in the laboratory for further analysis.
Does poor sperm motility affect male fertility?
To be able to fertilize an egg, sperm must be healthy. There are several main criteria that show sperm health, including:
- Sperm volume or number
- Motility (sperm movement)
- Form of sperm
- Acrosome reaction (membrane fusion that releases enzymes from the head of the sperm to support fertilization)
- Zone pellucida binding (the ability of sperm to penetrate into a thick transparent membrane around the egg in the process of fertilization)
- Having the right number of chromosomes so that the baby is conceived perfectly
Damage or disability on one of the criteria mentioned can cause infertile men. Therefore, a man who has a bad sperm movement may find it difficult to get offspring.
Quoted from Medical News Today, almost 90 percent of male fertility problems are actually caused by a small number of sperm. However, poor sperm motility and abnormal sperm forms contribute 10 percent of the things that make it difficult for men to have children.
Causes of slow sperm movement
Various things can cause a slowdown in sperm movements so that men have difficulty having children. Among others are:
- Testicular infection
- Testicular cancer
- Testicular surgery
- Testicles do not go down (cryptorchidism)
- Long-term use of anabolic steroids
- Varicocele, enlarged blood vessels in the scrotum
- The use of illegal drugs such as marijuana and cocaine
- Certain herbal medicines
- Genetic factors
- Excessive cigarette consumption (more than 10 cigarettes per day)
Treat bad sperm motility
Treating sperm motility can be done by applying a healthy lifestyle such as:
- Exercise regularly
- Maintain ideal body weight
- Limit cellphone radiation exposure by not putting it in a pants pocket
- Reducing alcohol consumption
- Quit smoking
In addition to a healthy lifestyle, several types of supplements can also help improve sperm motility. A study from Healthline found that consuming 200 micrograms of selenium together with 400 units of vitamin E for 100 consecutive days could increase sperm motility by 52 percent.
If the cause is a health disorder such as low hormone levels and varicocele, then the use of follicle stimulating hormones and chorionic gonadotropins can help. In some cases, doctors will also recommend surgery.
Avoid the habit of consuming marijuana, cocaine, and other drugs that can reduce sperm quality if you and your partner are planning a pregnancy.
It is also important to keep the testicular temperature ideal because sperm are easily damaged if exposed to hot temperatures, for example because they are accustomed to sitting in a hot motorbike. Also try to get up from sitting every 30 minutes to prevent an increase in the temperature around the testicles due to too long sitting.
