Antioxidant supplements do not improve sperm quality, study shows

A new study found that supplements increase the chances of conceiving a man

. An extensive clinical trial of 174 couples in eight fertility centers in America – one of the largest tests on supplements and sperm health – has emerged. "slight" changes after three months, but not far enough to make a difference in fertility.

Results Question Scientific Supporting Supplementing Supplements Industry

All Men in Study, led by Professor Anne Steiner of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, had been diagnosed with male infertility. quality is measured using four main factors.

These include,

First: the concentration of sperm. A "normal" concentration of sperm is between 15 million and more than 200 million sperm per milliliter of sperm. A man is diagnosed with a "low" sperm count of less than 15 million sperm per milliliter (ie less than 39 million sperm per ejaculation).

Second: the motility or ability of sperm to swim deftly towards the egg. A common cause of infertility is sperm that moves slowly.

Third: morphology, which refers to the size and shape of the sperm. To be fertile, men need at least four percent of their sperm to have a "normal" shape (with an oval head and a long tail). An "abnormal" sperm can have a crooked head or a short tail, or even more of a tail, which can make it more difficult for the egg to penetrate.

Finally, they measured whether DNA fragmentation These sperm parameters were measured at the beginning of the test and at three months.

While "spermatogenesis" (the process of sperm maturation) takes 74 days, the impact of antioxidants is short-term, which means that the effects must be observed very quickly after the start of treatment. According to them, three months would be sufficient to follow the impact of these supplements on a few cycles.

The men in the study received each supplement containing vitamins C, D3 and E, folic acid, zinc, selenium and L-carnitine. The control group received a placebo

At the end of the trial, they found no statistically significant difference.

There were no significant differences in the concentration, morphology, motility, or fragmentation of spermatozoa.

The supplementation group had a conception rate of 10.5%, compared to 9.1% in the placebo group.

The team reassessed its fertility rate at six months – each person continuing with his supplement or placebo – and the numbers were not checked. budge.