'I am desperate to have children, but my sperm count is very low'
'I can understand your extreme desire to have a child. It is too early to let the hopes fade'
A reader, who wishes to remain anonymous, asks: I am 27-years old. I got married a year back, but don't have a baby so far. After couple of tests, I found out that my sperm count is low. Please, let me know if there are any alternative medicines for this problems. I am desperate to have children. Please advice.
Dr Jomol Mariam Thomas (Dubai Health Authority licensed Ayurveda Practitioner, Senior Ayurveda Consultant, Dr Shyam’s Ayurveda Centre, Dubai), replies: I can understand your extreme desire to have a child. It is too early to let the hopes fade.
The fertility factor matters if a couple is unable to achieve conception, even after a period of 12 months or more of unprotected regular intercourse. A normal (fertile) man’s sperm count and motility can also vary considerably from time to time due to many factors, including time between ejaculations, illness, medications etc. Hence a single test result should not be taken as a cause of concern. To confirm the accuracy you may have to repeat the test.
It is highly important to find out the possible causes for less sperm count. Apart from the structural abnormalities and underlying disorders, there are a few lifestyle factors that influence the sperm count:
- Wearing tight undergarments
- Bathing in very hot water
- Living in a hot weather country
- Sitting for long hours
- Over weight
- Very frequent semen ejaculation
- Smoking, excessive alcohol intake
- Over exertion, physically and mentally
- Nutritional deficiencies
Identify the cause and modify lifestyle and diet accordingly.
Diet
- Eat Nutritious Food: Diet that's low in fat, and high in protein ( fish & eggs), vegetables, nuts and whole grains are good for your health and for your sperm. Avoid bitter, astringent, acidic and spicy foods as they have deleterious effect on sperm production. Reduce caffeine intake too. Milk, ghee, butter, mutton soups and sweet preparations are to be opted.
- Intake of multivitamin with Zinc, Selenium and Vitamin-C is also beneficial
- For Zinc: Oysters, whole grain cereals, nuts , seeds, meet etc
- For selenium: Garlic, nuts, poultry, eggs, mushrooms etc
- For Vitamin C: Lemon, oranges, gooseberry etc
- Include celery, avocado, almond, cashew nuts, walnuts, dates etc in your diet
Ayurveda for you
Ayurveda addresses the rasayana and vajeekarana therapies as a method of increasing the health span and strengthening the reproductive tissues of the body.
- Aswagandha (withania somnifera - literally means smell of horse) is a drug of choice in enhancing the male fertility. The powder of Aswagandha taken with milk or boiled in milk added with sugar is good to be taken daily.
- Another useful remedy in male sub fertility is Kapikachu (mucuna pruriens). The seeds outside the pods of this wild growing creeper are powdered after being roasted and a table spoon of this taken every day with milk can also be helpful in your case.
- You could also take Aswagandhadi Lehyam, Jeevaneeya Ghrutham, Chyavanprasham, Mushali or Shilajith as per the advice of a doctor and to optimize the result it is highly recommended to go for Panchakarma therapy (Ayurveda Detoxification therapy) before you start any rasayana or vajeekarana treatments.
- The most suitable recommendation is possible only after a detailed consultation.
Disclaimer: This blog is a conversation and is not an alternative for treatment. The recommendations and suggestions offered by our panel of doctors are their own and Gulf News will not take any responsibility for the advice they provide.
