Titus Serunjogi
7 October 2007
Kampala — OVER 14% of Uganda's men are infertile, according to Dr. Drake Adupa, a consultant gynaecologist. That is, they cannot make their partners conceive. There are more men who can hardly achieve or sustain an erection.
Dr Adupa says the rates of infertility and impotence in Uganda are often due to the careless lifestyles of modern men.
"Everyday habits can cause your body to react in adverse ways and even impact you in 10 or 20 years without you even realising it," says Dr Adupa.
To make a woman conceive, a man must be able to produce millions of energetic and highly mobile sperms, one of which finally succeeds in fertilising the ova.
A man is infertile if he produces sperms that are weak, malformed or too few to survive the long run towards the egg.
Sperms are made in a place that must always remain at a lower temperature than the rest of the body.
Anything that increases the temperature of the testicles will also impair the rate at which a man produces good sperms. Men might want to avoid lounging in hot water bathtubs or at the sauna and steam bath, especially when they are planning a pregnancy.
"Spending more than 30 minutes in water at 40ºC or above, may lower your sperm count," says Dr Prakash Patel of the Fertility Endoscopy Clinic.
Tight underwear might also reduce sperm count temporarily; but a man will regain his virility once he begins wearing loose-fitting briefs.
Recent research has suggested that riding bicycles for prolonged periods of time can affect one's ability to have an erection.
But, Dr Adupa says: "This will only happen if a man continually, for several years, rides over bumpy terrain while wearing tight-fitting bicycle shorts."
Men are also advised to choose bikes whose seats are softer and broader. At least these exert minimal shock towards the scrotum.
Sometimes, a man's work schedules might demand that he stays awake till the wee hours of the morning, sleep for a couple of hours and be up by dawn. This is especially dangerous because it interferes with the way his body produces sexual hormones and sperms.
Sleeplessness thus lowers sex drive and can also reduce the level of sperm production. Experts advise that a man should sleep at least 8 hours a day for normal sexual function.
Taking too much sugar and eating deep fried foods can damage a man's sexual health permanently. These foods could lead to diabetes and high blood pressure; conditions that will compromise the way blood flows into the penis when one is sexually stimulated.
So, men might want to limit their intake of these foods.
Deep fried foods and sugars might also make a man overweight (having a body mass index of over 30).
This has been proved to disrupt a man's sperm count and increase the percentage of abnormal (useless) sperms he produces.
Drinking, smoking and taking recreational drugs are especially dangerous. A research by the American Association of Reproductive Health has shown that smokers have far lower sperm counts than men who do not smoke at all.
Drinking and smoking both deplete the body's supply of Vitamin C and yet the body needs it to make efficient sperms.
Notorious alcoholics are not only prone to depression, but they are also known to lack libido. Limit alcohol to no more than one or two drinks a day.
There are also many Ugandan men who buy drugs over the counter from unprofessional shopkeepers. Dr Adupa warns: "Cimetidine, an anti-ulcer drug sold without prescription will damage a man's potency over time.
The drug has a hormone that could, in the long run, cause a man to grow breasts, besides losing his virility." He adds that professionally, some drugs are prescribed to only women because they are detrimental to men's sexual health.
Besides, before getting any treatment for chronic illnesses like high blood pressure, gout or cancer, a man must ask his doctor about how that is going to affect his potency.
Studies have also proved that recreational drugs such as marijuana and cocaine can hinder the sperm's ability to swim and or fertilise an egg.
There is no problem with men showing off some muscle. However, Dr Patel says: "These days, there are so many men who take anabolic steroids to stimulate the muscles and their strength.
But, over a period of time, they could end up disrupting a man's sexual hormones."
Still, physical activity is good for reproductive health as well as your overall health. So every man should exercise moderately, but minus stimulating drugs.
Infidelity can also make a man infertile because it exposes him to repeated bouts of sexually transmitted diseases like chlymadia and gonorrhoea.
Once these diseases cause scars in the testes, they will block the passage of sperms making a man unable to impregnate a woman. These infections can be better controlled through mutual faithfulness.
Check to make sure that every illness is adequately treated. Untreated urethritis and prostatitis can lead a man to have retrograde ejaculation.
That is, at orgasm, his sperms go into the bladder instead of coming out through the penis.
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