Inside Fatherhood

Hot Tubs Reduce Fertility in Men

by steve on March 22nd, 2007

OK so the joke is on me. No I do not own a hot tub and yes I have 5 kids under the age 7. So am I a walking case study? Who knows. But thanks to Fertility Blog for pointing out a recent study done which took 11 men and monitored their behavior and sperm count levels for 3 months as they took periodic dips into the hot tub.

Not surprising we find that those who spend more time relaxing in a nice hot jacuzzi had a lower level of sperm. But as they spent more time out of it their sperm count began to climb. So it is not a permanent condition and can be reversed by taking less jacuzzi dips.

After 3 to 6 months, five of the men had an average increase in total motile sperm counts of 491 percent. “A large chunk of men who regularly take hot baths, sit in hot tubs or Jacuzzi’s can improve their semen quality and possibly their fertility potential by simply discontinuing this activity,” Turek said.

Five of the six men who did not see an increase in sperm count or quality were chronic cigarette smokers with a significant smoking history, whereas three of the men who had a good response were only occasional smokers.

“The message for men trying to conceive,” Turek concluded, “is to take great care of yourself and treat your body like a temple, as sperm production in particular is very sensitive to overall male health. It makes sense, given that a normal healthy man makes 1,200 sperm per heartbeat. This is a fast running engine that needs a healthy body to keep up that pace.”

Share This

Related Stories

I have a 4 month old tax credit, I mean son
Getting Your Kids to Brush Their Teeth
Plastic baby bottles found to leach chemicals into contents
He’s got gooood lungs
Cleaning toys naturally

POSTED IN: Parenting Studies