Manhoodtherapies Singapore/83766338

Wanting to have children is our deepest and most primal instinct – it is the only biological reason why we are placed on earth!  So having difficulty conceiving can be due to cellular or health reasons rather than emotional or mental stress. Infertility can be a brutal disease not just for the Destress that it can cause but also for the lack of sympathy from family members and the community.

Factors that can cause infertility are many. Below are the main ones:

. Varicocele. Although many men with a varicocele have normal fertility the structural abnormality in the vascular system within the scrotum sac can affect sperm quality. High tech radiological treatment can cure the varicocele but will not increase or improve the sperm count quality.

. Hormone imbalance. Both testosterone and sperm are produced in the testicles. If a man has small testicles he may produce poor quality or less sperm or have a deficiency in testosterone.

. Infections. Including having a history of sexually transmitted disease, mumps or glandular infection can cause his sperm to be less motile.

. Blockages of ejaculatory ducts. Some men are born with a blockage of the part of the tube that contains sperm or ejaculatory ducts. This condition inhibits them from transferring their sperm to the female. The vas deferents or the tube that carries the sperm may also be surgically blocked.

. Sexual issues. These are general problems with sexual intercourse and technique that impair the delivery of the sperm.

. Autoimmunity a condition when the immune system antibodies target sperm and weaken them or disable them. A semen analysis can determine which aspect of semen function is impaired. It provides information about sperm motility, liquefaction, count, and volume.

. Motility is the sperms ability to move rapidly towards the egg. If this movement is impeded the sperm will have less chance of reaching the egg for fertilisation. Laboratory tests indicate that at least 50% of sperm must have a normal functioning to be considered in the normal range.

. Liquefaction.  Before Ejaculation the sperm is contained within the semen which is thick and mucus like. Upon Ejaculation, the semen normally liquefies and becomes water-like to enable the sperm to swim towards the egg.  Poor liquefaction can result from enzyme deficiencies in the seminal plasma which, in turn, reflects an abnormality of the seminal vesicles. Liquefaction should occur in less than  30 minutes to be considered normal.

. Count.  Although it only takes one sperm to fertilise an egg, a sperm count that is less than 20 million sperm per millimetre of semen is considered Low. To do a laboratory test you require 25-250m/ml.

. Volume. To be considered normal, the amount of semen in one Ejaculation should be at least six millimetres

These  are the factors considered in western medicine of infertility.   I will next discuss about the Chinese or specifically the traditional Chinese medicine thoughts on infertility.