Compromised male fertility is thought to contribute to approximately half of clinical infertility cases.
Male infertility is a growing public health concern as experts have observed a 50% decline in male sperm counts over several decades.
Searching for answers, researchers have been investigating various environmental factors for their potential influence on sperm quality. These may include:
- radiation exposure
- endocrine disruptors
- lifestyle habitsTrusted Source (i.e., diet, stress, alcohol, drugs, and smoking)
In a recent study, scientists with the University of Geneva and the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute examined the effects that mobile phone use and placement may have on male infertility.
The 13-year study suggests that smartphone use may be associated with lower sperm concentration and total sperm count (TSC) in young adult males.
However, transitions to 3G and 4G may have eased the impact on sperm count, perhaps due to the lower transmitting power of newer phones.
The findings were recently published in Fertility and Sterility.
For the study, researchers recruited 2,886 men ages 18 to 22 between 2005 and 2018 at military recruitment centers. The study periods spanned from 2005–2007, 2008–2011, and 2012–2018.
The laboratory specialists captured semen samples and recorded sperm concentration, total sperm count (TSC), and motility.
Participants answered questions regarding their reproductive and overall health, education, and lifestyle habits and were asked how often they use their devices. Answers about use frequency ranged from once a week to over 20 times daily.
A total of 2,764 subjects answered the questions. The researchers categorized these participants into five groups per cell phone use frequency.
Median sperm concentration was markedly higher among the men who reported using their phones once weekly compared with those who used their phones more than 20 times daily.
Moreover, the first study period showed a “more pronounced” link between smartphone use and sperm concentration than subsequent periods. The trajectory appears to align with the progression of new technologies from 2G to 3G to 4G, corresponding to a decrease in the mobile phone’s output power.
Researchers also asked the participants where they kept their phones when not in use. Answers regarding non-use phone location included pants, jacket, belt carrier, or elsewhere not on the body.
About 85.7% of the study group — 2,368 males — reported keeping their phones in their pants pockets when not in use.
The remaining males stored their phones in their jackets (4.6%) or away from the body (9.7%).
Study models did not show any association between carrying phones in the pants and lower semen quality parameters.
This lack of correlation was also evident in the stratified analysis according to the recruitment period.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO)Trusted Source, a male with a sperm concentration below 15 million per milliliter may take more than a year to conceive a child with a partner.
Moreover, the chances of pregnancy are lower if the sperm concentration falls under 40 million per milliliter.
Research indicates that sperm count has lowered to an average of 47 million sperm per milliliter from 99 million. This is especially so in Western nations.
