What About Male Infertility?
In honor of Men's Health Month, we want to highlight Men's Fertility at Pulling Down the Moon.
Did you know that sperm counts have declined by 50% in the past 40 years?
by Christine Davis, Acupuncture Director
Did you also know that when there are known fertility issues, there is a 50/50 split between men's issues and women's issues?
Infertility medicine has largely focused on female concerns for a variety of reasons: she's the one who gets pregnant, she's the one with the complicated cycle of factors, but also our culture attacks men who show any signs of weakness. We even have language connecting fertility to manliness; "he doesn't have the balls to...."
The good news is that on the whole, many concerns relating to male fertility can be resolved fairly easily with a few healthy practices:
1. Get an annual physical with your general practitioner MD. Talk about what medications and supplements you are taking. Let them know that you are actively trying to conceive.
2. Look at your diet, exercise level, sleep, and stress level. If these things are not optimal, you could be affecting not just your fertility, but your overall health.
3. Quit smoking. Eliminate or reduce alcohol use & recreational drugs. All of these things have been shown to have an impact on sperm health.
4. If it has been 6 months to 1 year of actively trying to conceive (hetero couples, obvs!), consider making an appointment with a reproductive endocrinologist. Most practices can do a simple test to check the basic markers for sperm health and it's usually covered by insurance.
5. Get acupuncture!
There have been numerous studies throughout the world showing that acupuncture can help with sperm production, shape (morphology), movement (motility), and quantity. New sperm develop over the course of about 60-70 days, so there is always an ongoing opportunity to affect their quality by making healthy choices like including acupuncture to your routine.
Acupuncture visits at PDTM usually only take around 45 min (after your first visit, which is a little longer to cover your health history) and are super relaxing. There are no points in uncomfortable areas - it's really important that you feel comfortable during your session! We can even include points to help with allergies, stress/anxiety, pain, digestive stuff, or whatever might be bothering you.
It takes two to tango, so get in the game, guys!!
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