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Sperm production from men around the world is declining faster than we thought. Researchers fear we are approaching a tipping point. So the fertility of the majority of men is in danger.
A 2017 study found that sperm counts in Western men dropped by more than 50% in a single ejaculation between 1973 and 2011.
The same researchers looked at what happened over the past ten years. To do this, they took a closer look at several sperm studies between 2014 and 2019. They then added this data to their old data.
The conclusion is that the average sperm concentration fell from 101 million sperm to 49 million sperm per milliliter between 1973 and 2018. This is a drop of 51.6%. And since 2000, this annual decline has accelerated.
The new data also includes semen samples from men from South and Central America, Africa and Asia. The new study would therefore provide a better overall picture than the 2017 analysis.
“We need to tackle the global seed crisis now”
According to senior researcher Hagai Levine of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, there is a global seed crisis. “We need to address this issue now, before we reach a tipping point that may not be reversible,” he said.
Previous studies have shown that fertility is at risk if the sperm concentration drops below 40 million sperm per milliliter. Although the average is still above that amount according to the latest estimates, there will eventually be more and more men who do not exceed the 40 million threshold, Levine believes.
On average, the sperm count per ejaculation is usually between 40 and 300 million per milliliter.
Fertility decreases due to chemicals and smoking
The study also has limitations. For example, sperm quality was not examined. The cause of the decrease has also not been investigated, although there are various theories about it. One is the increase in chemicals that pregnant women pass to the baby in the womb.
Many experts also agree that factors such as smoking, alcohol, obesity, and poor diet have a negative impact on sperm production.
The study is published in the scientific journal Human Reproduction Update.
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