What is Infertility?
Infertility is when a couple is unable to conceive a child even after having tried for over an year with regular unprotected sex. The infertility may be in the male, the female or both. Also, when a woman is able to conceive but unable to carry the baby for the whole term of pregnancy, she is said to be infertile.
Infertility in Men :
Causes :
Factors that cause infertility in men can be physical, psychological, behavioral, hormonal etc. A lot depends on the lifestyle that men lead. Their sperm count largely depends on if they live a healthy lifestyle or not
1. Too much of alcohol: Having too much of alcohol lowers your testesterone levels, making your sperm count decrease and can also lead to erectile dysfunction. Also the liver problems occurred due to too much consumption of alcohol, can ultimately lead to infertility in males.
2. Tobbaco/Smoking: Men who smoke regularly have less of sperm count as compared to those who never smoke. Also, second hand smoke decreases sperm health to a certain extent.
3. Weight: Being obese triggers many diseases and health issues. One such health issue is the decrease in sperm count and decrease in it’s quality.
4. Varicocele: It is a condition in which there is swelling of the vein that drains the testicle. This condition prevents mobility of the sperms leading to fewer sperm count. This is one most common cause of infertility in men.
5. Hormonal imbalance: The hormonal imbalance may be in the testicles itself or else where such as the hypothalamus, pituitary, thyroid and adrenal glands. This will in total affect the sperm count of a male body.
6. Too much of cycling: Cycling for long can cause heating up of testicles, and numbness in the penis hence leading to erectile dysfunction.
7. Infections: Some infections can cause blockage in the passage of sperms. This passage is the one that carries the sperms out of the penis. These infections may be sexually transmitted infections such as chlamydia, gonorrhea etc.
Infertility in Women :
Causes :
Infertility in women is more common than infertility in men. There are a whole lot of reasons for infertility in women. Some of the most common reasons are related to physical flaws in a woman’s body. These are some of the causes
1. Polycystic ovary syndrome: Changes occurring in pituitary gland, hypothallamus and ovary affects ovulation. It’s one of the most common cause of female infertility. It is also associated with obesity, acne etc.
2. Premature Ovarian insufficiency: This occurs when your body mistakenly attacks ovarian tissues or premature loss of eggs occur due to reasons such as genetic and environmental reasons.
3. Damaged fallopian tubes: Infection due to chlamydia, gonorrhea or other sexually transmitted infections can damage the fallopian tubes.
5. Pelvic tuberculosis: It is a major cause of tubal infertility worldwide.
6. Endometriosis: Endometriosis occurs when the tissue that should grow in the uterus, implants and grows in other locations. This extra tissue growth, or even it’s removal after a surgery can prevent the egg and sperm from fusing hence leading to infertility.
7. Natural defectiveness: The uterus may be such by birth that it is incapable of carrying a baby. Inherited malformation of the cervix, inability of cervix to provide mucus to the sperm to swim through and reach the egg.
8. Lifestyle pattern: too much of smoking, alcohol, exercise, overweight, underweight etc are also some of the factors that can contribute to infertility.
So, these were some of the causes of infertility in men and women. The factors that are in human control must be taken care of. Because those that are not, we are helpless about them. So, maintaining a healthy lifestyle must be kept in mind always.