Are You Neglecting Male Fertility On Your Journey To Conceive? | with Natalie Pickering

Too little attention is being paid to male fertility and sperm vitality. This is causing thousands of couples to stay stuck in trying month after month... after month.

Sperm health and male fertility play a much larger role in getting pregnant than you are taught. We desperately need to change this pervasive attitude. The unwillingness to highlight this is completely archaic. I’m not suggesting we start pointing fingers or laying blame, it's about the science!

Research and studies show - with no doubt at all, that we need healthy sperm to get pregnant and have a healthy full term pregnancy and baby. The idea that "we only need one sperm and there are millions so shouldn't that be fine" is not playing out in the numbers. Excellent sperm health:

Do you know the details of your partners sperm analysis?

If not you need to ask for a copy! Call the clinic where you received your referral and ask for a copy to be sent out. As long as you have spoken to the health care provider about the results, there should be no barrier to your receiving the results.

Then you need to read through them. I know this can feel a bit confronting if reading results is unfamiliar to you. This is an ideal time to ask for professional support from a naturopath who specialises in fertility support. To get started here are some numbers you should be looking for!

Ideal Results

Morphology - should be over 12% normal

Motility - should be over 32% rapid progressive A-grade sperm

DNA fragmentation - should be under 5%

Count – should be over 40million /ml

If you're feeling confused about sperm health and why no one has paid any attention to it and you're looking for support I’m here for you, you certainly don't have to do this alone.

The reality is - without good sperm, you can't make a baby.

If your egg quality is lower than ideal it's even more important that sperm quality is excellent. Your egg does not have the energy or antioxidant reserve to do all the repair she needs to do on a sub-optimal sperm.

Another thing to be aware of is - invariably you'll be told your man's sperm are ' all fine' or 'all good '.... but, the sperm quality, motility, morphology or DNA fragmentation are just a point off being 'poor'. This is not good enough. If your partner’s sperm are borderline low over several of the parameters above – this will make it really hard to get pregnant.

I see this over and over amongst my patients and clients.

Unfortunately, some specialists do not have the tools to help your man make better sperm, so it's just not mentioned. It takes personalised lifestyle and diet modification, nutritional and botanical supplementation to make a difference to sperm quality and count. These are not the tools a GP or fertility specialist has in their toolbox.

So, what next?

Here's what I suggest you do next:

If you need someone to support you on your fertility journey, book a consult with Natalie here, and she can help you find what is preventing you from conceiving.

As one of Australia's most highly regarded natural fertility specialists, Natalie has been nurturing, guiding and supporting women to overcome their health challenges for well over two decades.