Male Obesity and Sperm Health

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Obesity and sperm health are not a healthy pairing which is why obesity is a central cause of male infertility.

Sperm health is measured by three factors:

1. Motility – Ability to swim efficiently.
2. Vitality – Percentage of living healthy sperm in a specimen.
3. Morphology – Size and shape of individual sperm.

The more fat a man has the more likely he is to have a low sperm count. He is also more likely to have decreased sperm quality and movement. These factors make it more difficult to conceive, while low sperm quality can also lead to miscarriage.

Being overweight or obese can lead to hormonal imbalances. If a man’s body has excess body weight, the male hormone testosterone turns into the female hormone estrogen. When a man has higher than normal estrogen levels, his testicles are less likely to produce sperm.

Another problem in obese men is that the scrotum often remains in close contact with the body. Being closer to the surrounding body tissues raises the temperature of the scrotum, which keeps the sperm at a higher temperature. If testicular temperature is higher over time, it is difficult to generate healthy sperm in high quality and high count.

And finally, a more serious men’s infertility issue, azoospermia (a complete lack of viable sperm in the semen) is also more common in obese men.

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The takeaway:

“Infertility” is not just a female issue. A man’s weight has a significant impact on a couple’s ability to conceive. In fact, many couples can conceive quite quickly after the man loses weight, lowering his BMI from an unhealthy level. This is also true for the female.