At what age is the best sperm quality in men?

The importance of men to pay attention to the fertile period

Not only women who should pay attention to their fertile period, men are also obliged to know. In common people, most people only think that fertility is a woman's business, even though men also have a fertile period that will determine the success or failure of the pregnancy process.

There are a number of things that can affect the quality of sperm in a person's body, such as age and lifestyle factors. That is why, the quality of sperm in a man's body is not always the same from time to time. But broadly speaking, the best sperm quality can be obtained at the reproductive age range, which is between 25-40 years.

This quality can be measured using a spermogram test (sperm analysis test). According to the standards of the World Health Organization, there are three parameters that can be used to measure sperm quality, namely, number (concentration), speed (motility), and shape (morphology).

As long as the person is in excellent physical health and sexual health, the spermogram does not show any difference in sperm quality for men aged 20, 30, and 40 years.

Sperm quality actually decreases after childbearing age

After passing the range of fertile age, then there will be a number of changes in sperm quality. According to a study conducted at the University of Otago, New Zealand, in 2014, sperm quality decreases with age. In addition to reduced sperm volume, sperm speed has also decreased. As a result, it is more difficult for sperm to reach the egg to carry out the fertilization process.

Research also shows a decrease in the quality of the shape (morphology) of sperm. This change in shape is important because it indicates the genetic content contained in sperm. The existence of significant deviations in the shape of the sperm can make fertilization difficult or cause chromosomal abnormalities, one of which can increase the risk of Down syndrome in the fertilized fetus.

Bad habits can reduce the quality of your sperm

One thing that should not be forgotten, the age factor is not the only thing that can affect sperm quality. Diet and lifestyle as a whole actually have a bigger role in determining quality.

An unhealthy diet, for example, too much intake of fat and sugar, can increase a person's risk of obesity and diabetes. Both types of health problems can cause a decrease in quality.

Not only that, serious diseases such as tuberculosis, typhus, and hepatitis, as well as bad habits such as smoking, drug abuse, and alcoholism, can also result in decreased sperm quality. Cigarettes especially need to be avoided because the toxins contained in nicotine can damage the sperm head. As a result, sperm will have difficulty penetrating the egg cell wall.

Improve sperm quality with a healthy lifestyle

The good news is, the quality of sperm that has begun to decline can be improved by starting to adopt a healthy lifestyle and doing some good habits. If they are able to do this, it is not impossible that the sperm quality of men who are at the final threshold for reproductive age will be superior to those who are still in the middle of the fertile age range.

What are the good habits that need to be adopted to improve quality? Nothing but eating types of foods that contain balanced nutrition, increasing the consumption of foods rich in antioxidants (folic acid, vitamin C, zinc, vitamin E, etc.), and doing regular exercise to maintain ideal body weight.

The habit of soaking in hot water or wearing tight pants also needs to be reduced to avoid an increase in temperature in the testicles. The reason is, an increase in temperature in the testicles can risk reducing sperm count.

Not only that, sexual health conditions also need to be maintained. That is, do not arbitrarily change partners and do regular intercourse so that the sperm production cycle is well maintained. So, encourage your partner to maintain a healthy lifestyle so that sperm quality is maintained.