A man's semen count is a marker of his general health, according to the largest study to date evaluating semen quality, reproductive function and metabolic risk in men referred for the fertility evaluation. "Our study clearly shows that low sperm count by itself is associated with metabolic alterations, cardiovascular risk, and low bone mass," said the study's lead investigator.
"Infertile men are likely to have important co-existing health problems or risk factors that can impair quality of life and shorten their lives," said the researcher, who is also president of the Italian Society of Andrology and Sexual Medicine. "Fertility evaluation gives men the unique opportunity for health assessment and disease prevention." Specifically, He and his colleagues found that about half the men had low sperm counts and were 1.2 times more likely than those with normal sperm counts to have…
