An update to a 2017 study revealed an impending fertility crisis is upon us. Total sperm count declined at an alarming level – 62.3% from 1973 to 2018 – and the rate of decline is accelerating.
STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- Men experienced a 50% to 60% decline in sperm counts from 1973 to 2011, according to a 2017 study published in Human Reproduction Update
- A 2022 update to the study includes data from 53 countries and an additional seven years — 2011 to 2018 — and the results are alarmingly similar
- Sperm concentration declined “appreciably” by 51.6% from 1973 to 2018
- The percent decline per year doubled, increasing from 1.16% after 1972 to 2.64% after 2000
- Total sperm count also declined at an alarming level — 62.3% from 1973 to 2018
- The study authors believe lifestyle choices and endocrine-disrupting chemicals in the environment are key culprits in the declines
An impending fertility crisis is upon us. Men experienced a 50% to 60% decline in sperm counts from 1973 to 2011, according to a 2017 study published in Human Reproduction Update.1Human Reproduction Update, Volume 23, Issue 6, November-December 2017, Pages 646–659, doi: 10.1093/humupd/dmx022 That study included men from North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand, but was criticized because it didn’t include global data.
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