{"id":15252,"date":"2021-04-18T00:45:13","date_gmt":"2021-04-18T00:45:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/givelegacy.com\/?post_type=resource&p=2238"},"modified":"2023-06-14T13:44:20","modified_gmt":"2023-06-14T13:44:20","slug":"male-fertility-myths-debunked-5-facts-you-should-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.givelegacy.com\/resources\/male-fertility-myths-debunked-5-facts-you-should-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Male fertility myths, debunked: 5 facts you should know"},"content":{"rendered":"
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April 18\u201324, 2021 is <\/span>National Infertility Awareness Week<\/span><\/a>, a time for education, advocacy, and support-building around the infertility community. <\/span>Infertility affects 1 in 8 heterosexual couples<\/b>. It\u2019s a disease that\u2019s diagnosed when a couple has been actively trying to conceive for 6\u201312 months or more, or has other issues affecting their ability to get pregnant naturally.<\/span><\/p>\n

These are the top five male fertility myths, debunked\u2014and everything you need to know about infertility.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Male fertility myth #1<\/b>:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cInfertility is a female issue.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/h2>\n

For too long, women have shouldered all the responsibility for fertility planning\u2014and all of the blame, when trying to conceive didn\u2019t go as planned. But the reality is that male-factor infertility accounts for around 1\/3 of infertility cases; female-factor infertility accounts for another 1\/3, and a combination of factors or \u201cunknown\u201d comprises the rest.<\/span><\/p>\n

That means that around half of all infertility cases involve the male partner in some way. And this number is on the rise, as sperm counts drop globally. Between 1973 and 2011, <\/span>sperm concentration declined<\/span><\/a> 50\u201360% among Western men. Plus, paternal age is on the rise, and sperm quality decreases with age, especially after 40 (more about that below).<\/span><\/p>\n

Fertility is far from a \u201cwomen\u2019s issue,\u201d and framing it that way not only places undue pressure on the female partner, but creates shame and isolation amongst men who deal with infertility. <\/span>Learn more in our <\/span><\/i>Guide to Male Fertility<\/span><\/i><\/a>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

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Male fertility myth #2<\/b>:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMen are fertile at any age.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/h2>\n

Stories of men in their 60s or even older fathering children tend to fuel the idea that male fertility is eternal. After all, the world\u2019s oldest dad was able to father a baby at 96 years old\u2014so male fertility is eternal, right?<\/span><\/p>\n

But that\u2019s a misconception. While men typically continue producing sperm until death, paternal age is among the <\/span>most significant factors<\/b> affecting a couple\u2019s chance of conceiving and their pregnancy outcomes. Men over the age of 35\u201340 typically experience a decrease in sperm health, affecting pregnancy rates, time to conception, miscarriage risk, adverse pregnant outcomes, and offspring health risks.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Metric<\/b><\/td>\nEffect of age<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pregnancy rates<\/span><\/td>\nMen will generally see a 52% decrease in fertility rate between their early 30s and their mid-to-late 30s.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Time to conception<\/span><\/td>\nCompared to men 25 years or younger, men 45 years or older are 12.5 times more likely to take over two years to conceive.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Miscarriage risk<\/span><\/td>\nPregnancy loss between the 6- and 20-week gestation period increases by 27% in fathers 35 years or older. That risk doubles when fathers reach 50.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Adverse pregnancy outcomes<\/span><\/td>\nPregnancies that involve a male over the age of 45 see an increased risk of birthing complications, and their offspring have an increased risk for adverse birth outcomes.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Offspring health risks<\/span><\/td>\nOlder fathers may be more likely to have children with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, autism, Down syndrome, or childhood leukemia.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

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There are four sperm quality<\/a> parameters that change naturally with age: count, motility, morphology, and DNA fragmentation<\/a>:<\/span><\/p>\n