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Improving sperm quality
My husband and I have been trying to have a baby for over a year now. Tests show my husband has 80% abnormal sperm rates and that while his sperm count is normal, mobility is 60%. The consultant says this does not mean we cannot conceive but I would like to do something to improve our chances.
Scientists have now established that antioxidants are not only present in the male genital tract but play a key role in male fertility. Researchers at the department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York reported that levels of three key antioxidants - betacarotene, lycopene and retinol - were all significantly lower in men with fertility problems than men with normal sperm counts and motility.
Betacarotenes can act as a precursor to vitamin A. If there is a deficiency of this nutrient, then the liver will convert betacarotene to vitamin A. The trouble is, once this happens, the betacarotene then loses its antioxidant effect.
A better bet would be to concentrate on the lycopene, which is the substance that gives tomatoes their red colouring. It is also unusual in that it becomes more bioavailable once it has been processed. In other words, the lycopene in a tomato pasta sauce or even tomato ketchup is even more potent than the lycopene in fresh tomatoes.
I recently returned from a research trip in Israel where scientists have developed a new hybrid tomato that contains almost four times the lycopene content of an everyday tomato. It was bizarre to see acre after acre of tomato plants growing alongside UN lookout posts at the Syrian border, but if you are looking for a good antioxidant, this is as good as it gets for both sexes. The technology has now been used to develop a new supplement called Lyc-o-mato, which was launched in the UK earlier this month.
It takes 120 days to make a single sperm and even without problems, only 400 of the 400 million sperm ejaculated ever reach the egg. Researchers at Sheffield University have shown how taking 600mg of vitamin E every day for three months improved the quality of sperm in 20% of men. (If you have a heart complaint or take anticoagulant drugs, do not take this supplement without medical advice).
Several of the amino acids have also been identified as being crucial to the formation of healthy sperm. The most important ones are L-arginine and L-taurine. The biggest single deficiency linked to infertility in both sexes is zinc - which affects almost everything to do with reproduction, especially the longevity of the sperm in the vaginal tract. You should both take a supplement of 50mg a day.
*Lyco-mato costs £10.99 for a month’s supply. To mail order call 0800-0837040.