Unemployment may Increase Infertility Risk in Men

As long-term unemployment continues to escalate for many in search of future work, new research from Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health and Rutgers School of Public Health found that men who are dealing with the stress of unemployment are more likely to suffer from infertility.

"Men who feel stressed are more likely to have lower concentrations of sperm in their ejaculate, and the sperm they have are more likely to be misshapen or have impaired motility," said enior author Pam Factor-Litvak, PhD, associate professor of Epidemiology at the Mailman School of Public Health, via a press release. "These deficits could be associated with fertility problems."

For the study, researchers examined 193 men between the ages of 38 and 49 who participated in the Study of the Environment and Reproduction at the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan in Oakland, California between 2005 and 2008.

Participants were required to fill out questionnaires regarding stress and work in their life based on subjective and objective scales.

All of the male participants were asked to provide semen samples so that researchers could better determine their appearance, concentration and motility.

The findings showed that subjective and objective life stress levels harmed sperm quality.

Though the results showed that workplace stress did not impact sperm quality, researchers believe that workplace stress can negatively influence reproductive health. In fact, the findings showed that being unemployed could increase the risk of infertility, despite stress levels.

"Stress has long been identified as having an influence on health. Our research suggests that men's reproductive health may also be affected by their social environment," addedfirst author Teresa Janevic, PhD, and an assistant professor at the Rutgers School of Public Health, via the release.

More information regarding the findings can be seen via the journal Fertility and Sterility.