Excerpted from "A Year of Health Hints"
365 Practical Ways to Feel Better and Live Longer
If a man has been unsuccessful at fathering a child, he'll
probably be checked for two kinds of problems: low sperm count
(too few sperm per given volume of semen) and poor sperm motility
(sperm that are poor swimmers and have trouble fertilizing an
egg).
Factors that can reduce fertility in men include:
Extreme
overweight.
Heavy smoking.
(Smoking has been associated with low sperm count and poor sperm
motility.)
Drug and alcohol
use. (Marijuana and alcohol lower production of testosterone, a
hormone
produced by the
testicles.)
Wearing tight,
restrictive underwear. (Clothing that holds the testicles too
close to the body heats
them up and thus
interferes with sperm production, which is temperature
sensitive.)
Work that requires
you to sit for long periods of time (for reasons similar to those
above).
Frequent use of
saunas or hot tubs.
Prolonged
occupational exposure to lead, zinc, copper, or radiation.
(Pollutants can disrupt the
production, quality,
and transportation of sperm.)
Prolonged
abstinence from sex.
Use of lubricants
like petroleum jelly and K-Y Jelly, which can kill or immobilize
sperm.
Infection or other
illness. (These hamper the testicles' ability to
do their job.)
A varicocele (a
congenital defect in the blood vessels to the testes).
For many men, restoring fertility is simply a matter of
switching to boxer shorts, quitting smoking, losing weight, or
making other adjustments. Be patient, though. It may take two or
three months to restore fertility. If your wife still doesn't
conceive, see a doctor who specializes in treating infertility.