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February 4th, 2013
06:32 PM ET
Too much TV could damage sperm productionSemen quality is a much-discussed subject among scientists these days. Data suggests sperm concentration has been declining in Western countries over the past couple of decades - and reasons for the decline are debatable. The lead author of a new study on the subject, Audrey Gaskins, has been studying the effects of diet and exercise on semen for several years as a doctoral candidate at the Harvard School of Public Health. Her latest research shows a lack of physical activity – and too much time in front of the television - may impact sperm count and concentration. Previous studies have shown a link between physical activity and decreased levels of oxidative stress, Gaskins says. “Oxidative stress” is stress placed on the body as it tries to get rid of free radicals or repair the damage caused by them. Exercise may protect certain male cells from oxidative damage, Gaskins says, leading to increased sperm concentration. Those findings led Gaskins to complete an observational study on young men’s exercise and TV habits as they relate to semen quality. The results were published online Monday in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. Gaskins and her colleagues asked 189 healthy men between the ages of 18 and 22 how often they exercised each week and how intensely they worked out. The study participants also recorded their TV watching habits. Then at the clinic, semen samples were collected from each man. The semen was analyzed for sperm size and shape, motility, concentration and total sperm count. The researchers also conducted a physical examination and looked at the men’s diet, body weight, reproductive history, stress levels and smoking habits to rule out other potential causes of their findings. The results The men who did moderate to vigorous exercise 15 hours or more per week had a significantly higher sperm concentration than those who worked out less than five hours a week. And the men who watched more than 20 hours of TV a week had almost half the sperm concentration as the men who watched zero hours a week. Gaskins says the researchers found these associations between TV, exercise and sperm concentration regardless of the men’s diet, body weight or smoking habits. Sperm motility and size/shape did not appear to be affected by exercise or time spent in front of the TV. The caveats The data used in this study came from a relatively small group of men, meaning it may not translate well to the general population as a whole. And only one semen sample was collected from each man; that sample could have been different from the participant’s “normal” levels. The data was also self-reported – i.e., the study participants could have elaborated or underestimated the amount of time they spent doing a particular activity. Observational studies like this (that don’t include a separate control group) make it impossible to prove a cause-and-effect relationship, Gaskins says. While there appears to be a link between physical activity and sperm concentration, the two could really be unrelated. It’s also “not possible to conclude from these findings whether the observed differences in sperm counts translate into clinically relevant difference in fertility,” the study authors write. The takeaway This study doesn’t conclusively prove physical activity boosts your fertility, or that watching too much TV damages your sperm. But there is plenty of research out there on the other benefits of exercise. Do yourself – and potentially your little swimmers – a favor by staying active. If that means giving up some TV time, so be it.
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  About this blog
Get a behind-the-scenes look at the latest stories from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen and the CNN Medical Unit producers. They'll share news and views on health and medical trends - info that will help you take better care of yourself and the people you love.
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Humans developed language to be able to produce seminal (sic) journalism like this. Evolution still has a long, long way to go.
I like turtles.
Think I'll go watch some more TV
Wow That was about the longest and convoluted story I have read in a while that, at the end comes to no conclusion at all. A non-story. But exercise is good for you...
THEY GOT THAT RITE!!!
I ate a TV and now I can't make no babies.
Did you guys look up this Audrey Gaskins? Total hottie.
Now why is she studying this? Must be a major turn-on for her.
Lets see a study with 189 men. No doubt probably funded by the the American Taxpayer for the unbelievable low price of a few million bucks. Probably one of the many pork projects thrown in to a bill passed by our incredibly incompetent and very clueless leaders on both sides of the isle who call themselves congress-people. (Needed to be fair and not call them Congressman anymore. I need to make sure I can offend both genders.)
Too bad it doesn't lower Testosterone count.. America needs a LOT less of it!!! Put estrogen in the water and calm the violent behavior a bit shall we?
go back to the kitchen
You even touch my water and I will rip your ovaries out!
All three of you folks need a hug...
Hi estrogen levels make men aggressive. Look it up.
Too much oestrogen leads to more cancer with women and decrease in sperm count to males which isn't a surprise.
I know (hope) you're joking, but studies actually show that testosterone supplements reduce depression and anger, while increasing motivation, mental clarity and self confidence. Estrogen supplements, well...don't.
Before everyone jumps all over this, this isn't an observation about gender, it's an observation about what happens when you have too much or too little of these hormones.
This is the most stupid feministic comment ever. I am not from US, but I can see clearly how males are becoming disposable gender. It's all about women. Women this, women that, let's destroy men. And here is the real problem. Society needs more REAL men and not more feminists. This is one of the biggest US and global issues – disappearing male!
GET IN THE KITCHEN AND MAKE ME A PIE!!!!
Woman shouldntt think too much about stuff.
Testosterone has nothing to do with violent behavior. Violent behavior comes from having screws loose in your head from growing up with bad parents. Look at the kids who shoot up schools, they are skinny awkward little creeps...the opposite of having too much testosterone.
We could do that, but then whoever would you call when your chestnuts are again roasting over an open fire???
Keiyuuki, you confuse testosterone with stupidity and lack of civility, the two are not mutually inclusive. When I was a young man my libido, stamina and physical strength were through the roof, but my family had raised me to be a gentleman...so I was.
This certainly explains why latinos are outnumbering whites in one heck of a hurry! LOL!
Not possible. I procreated while watching TV.
My wife watches TV a lot and has an incredibly low sperm count.
My children watch TV before and after pre-school, and so far I have no grandkids so this much be true.
I don't even own a TV and I have a low sperm count. I do, however, work 40 hours a week in front of a computer. Let's blame that.
This might be the dumbest study I have ever read about. I have a high sperm count and I'm in front of a tv or computer screen 10-12 hours a day for the past 20 years.
It's all Bush's fault.
If TV can do that then computer can as well, now i know my problem.
This is agood thing. Over population will eventually destroy the world.
The hell with sperm cells.
I want to know what brought creativity to such a screeching halt.
This reminds of the movie called "Children of Men" with exception that men are becoming in a way sterile and incapable. Those who say Earth is being overpopulated some day you might eat your words.
Maybe cause-and-effect are reversed; maybe men with more testosterone and sperm feel more macho and feel the urge to exercise more.
.... My sperm count must be pretty close to non-existent at this point then. lol.
Positive effect:
-Less chance of pregnancy from raping
-Less rate of raping
-Less rate of teenager pregnancy
-Less rapers
Do you mean less "rappers?"
WOW, you must die a little bit every day, living in such abject terror...
Watch all the sports I want, and no babies too. Win-win.
Not if you're watching pron!
This is stupid. It's obviously due to the lack of the sampled people's activity, not the TV doing it.
1...2...3...aw dang,I lost count!
Federal government needs to get involved and determine how much tv men should be allowed to watch. When people are microchipped according to the Obamacare policies, then government can (hopefully) monitor how much tv folks watch. Then Mr. Prez can issue another executive order to make men do what he feels is best for them.
Mr Obama could use this as a reason to issue an executive order to tell men how much tv he thinks they need to watch.
Don't give him any ideas.
You get to watch TV, and you have a lower chance of getting your girlfriend pregnant. Sounds like Win-Win to me.
It is not the TV or the exercise. It is the over use of caffeinated soda drinks (Coke, Pepsi, etc.) to blame, you fools.
My daughter's father consumed lots of caffeinated drinks, didn't exercise a lot, we watched a LOT of TV together (and also played a lot of video/computer games), and I was on the pill and took it exactly as prescribed – and yet, my daughter still exists. Maybe his sperm just got super-concentrated and managed to plow through all those obstacles. If anything, my first thought would be that something that causes the higher sperm counts in some men also drives them to be more physically active in the first place.
Not to mention how hard it is to clean off the flat screen.
Hey CNN – If the study itself admits that it is inconclusive then why are you writing a story about it? Do you have available space now that you can't run any more Mayan apocalypse stories?
The subjects were between the ages of 18 and 22. These are not men, these are boys! LOL!!
Really?? When I was 20 I could probably knock a girl up by just bumping into her.
The researcher conducted an experiment with a frog...
They amputated one leg, and told the frog to jump .. and it jumped.
They amputated a second leg, and told the frog to jump .. and it jumped.
They amputated a 3rd leg, and told the frog to jump .. and it jumped.
They amputated the 4th leg, and told the frog to jump. It didn't move.
The researcher concluded ... remove all 4 legs ... frog goes deaf.
Did you guys look up this Audrey Gaskins? Total hottie.
Now why is she studying this? Must be a major turn-on for her.
Did she collect data with her own hand?
Nooooooooooo!
Was there an inverse correlation between exercise and tv-watching?
What about people who exercised a lot and watched TV a lot?
I imagine it's not about TV at all...
I feel like having sex just reading this article....
I never let my sperm watch TV
Your tax dollars, hard at work! Give them a grant!!1!
Mmmmmmmm... sperm
grow up MORONS
Thank you for your article and sharing useful information. Sometimes we just can't handle things very well ,even though we know that it is unhealthy habit if watching too much TV. We have to make our health a priority. Keeping ourself healthy is really important. This is our investment to have a good life.
"Semen quality is a much-discussed subject among scientists these days."
Scientists and I have similar interests.
Great article. Personally I have found that increasing testosterone by using testosterone pills for men should help a great deal with this issue as well as other benefits.You may also visit https://www.dtapclinic.com to get more men's health informaiton.
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