Frequent Ejaculation May Enhance Male Fertility
Researchers suggest that encouraging men to ejaculate more often could improve their fertility. They found that sperm quality deteriorates the longer it remains in the male body.
As men refrained from sexual activity, their sperm exhibited increased DNA damage and oxidative stress. This, in turn, led to assessments of lower viability and poorer motility in the sperm.
The implications for fertility clinics are significant. If doctors aim to collect high-quality sperm, men should likely avoid abstaining for several days, contrary to existing guidelines.
Dr. Krish Sanghvi, a biologist from the University of Oxford and the lead on this study, noted, “The negative effects we found related to sperm DNA damage and oxidative stress were considerable, indicating that this is an important biological phenomenon.”
This insight emerged from a meta-analysis compiling 115 human studies with about 55,000 men, alongside 56 studies analyzing sperm storage effects in 30 non-human species. Both human and animal subjects showed that stored sperm generally deteriorated, regardless of age.
The World Health Organization (WHO) advises men to abstain from ejaculation for two to seven days before providing sperm for fertility evaluations or IVF. However, these guidelines were established primarily for maximizing sperm count, not necessarily quality.
Doctor Sanghvi suggested, “Clinicians and couples should rethink whether extended abstinence is beneficial, as it can lead to reduced sperm quality.” The detailed findings are available in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
He further stated, “If only sperm quantity matters for a clinic or a couple, then abstinence might be acceptable. But generally, fertilization success is influenced by both sperm count and quality, which is particularly important in IVF.”
Interestingly, while the Oxford research found no direct effect of abstinence on fertilization rates in humans, a recent clinical trial involving 453 couples reported a connection.
In that trial, IVF specialists compared pregnancy rates among two groups. The first group included men who abstained for less than two days before providing sperm, while the second group complied with WHO recommendations and abstained for two to seven days. The pregnancy rate stood at 46% for men who abstained for under 48 hours, in contrast to just 36% for those who abstained longer.
For couples trying to conceive naturally, a balance might be best—between two and seven days. Too long without ejaculation can damage sperm, reducing its mobility, while too short an abstinence period might result in insufficient or immature sperm. “For couples, our guidance would be that longer abstinence isn’t always advantageous. Striking a balance between quantity and quality is essential,” Dr. Sanghvi pointed out.
Allan Pacey, a professor of andrology at the University of Manchester, remarked, “Recent evidence suggests that shorter abstinence could be more beneficial during assisted reproduction treatments like IVF, as fresher sperm tends to be more motile and exhibits lower DNA damage.”
He added, “The two to seven days abstinence period remains vital for semen analysis during diagnosis, allowing for standardized results across laboratories and international norms. However, it holds less importance during actual IVF procedures.”
“For assisted reproductive technology treatments, having the healthiest, freshest sperm is likely more crucial. IVF can proceed with fewer sperm, particularly with techniques like ICSI, which means men don’t need to hold back their sperm as previously thought.”
