7 Ways to Improve Your Sperm

I’ve been working with women going through fertility challenges for over 10 years now. I teach a class I call part support group, part yoga class. We begin by talking, we talk about what’s working in our fertility journey and what’s not, we share our emotions, we share health concerns, our frustrations, our anger, the things that are making us sad… and we talk about sperm. I often hear concerns about sperm counts, quality and morphology of their partners. The funny thing is I never hear the women in my class say they were given solutions to improve sperm health. As a matter of fact I often here them say they were told nothing could be done to change the health of sperm.

Sperm health can be improved.

I want you to know that many things can be done to improve counts, quality and morphology. Consider healing from a “holistic” standpoint, when we look at healing holistically we look at healing the whole body, because everything is connected. The fact that the sperm is not optimal is a signal the body is giving you. It’s telling you, your body is not in balance. There is something bigger going on. Holistic healing works to the root cause of the issue, it digs deep. Conversely, in western medicine we look at the problem that is going on in the body, and find solutions for the problem. So we only look at the sperm, and deal with the sperm alone. The western medicine mindset and holistic mindsets are really different models. I think of the western solution as the band aid, and the holistic version as healing the root cause.

What you eat, how you live and the stress you have all affect your sperm health.

That said, if you are new to the holistic healing mindset, I invite you to open your mind up to search out your root cause of imbalance.  Let’s rock your sperm from a holistic standpoint. The choices a man makes with food, supplements, lifestyle and self care ALL matter. They all affect sperm count, quality and morphology. So let’s get specific and talk about things that can help improve this trifecta.

1.Take a vitamin D supplement

Low vitamin D levels are linked to low sperm count, morphology and motility.  Northern and midwest climates that have colder weather have particularly low sperm counts, but all climates should be focused on a supplement especially in the winter. Ask your doctor to check your levels. The optimal holistic range for Vitamin D levels is 50-80, the western medicine recommendations are usually 30-80, below 50 is too low. Based on your results add in a daily supplement of around 5000 iu’s per day. In the summer you may go down to about 2000 a day, dependent on your numbers and how you absorb.

2. Food matters

Plain and simple, you eat crap, your sperm are going to reflect that. Clean up your diet, I can not stress this enough, this matters more than ANYTHING. What you are eating & drinking on a daily basis MATTERS, to your sperm counts, and to a long healthy life.Stop letting our marketing focused nutrition culture tell you how to eat. For each meal cover 1/2 your plate in vegetables, protein about the size of your palm, and 1/2 an avocado, or a handful of nuts or olives. Yes, for every meal.Minimize grains, gluten, and dairy, as they can all cause inflammation. Focus on vegetables, good clean organic or pasture raised meats, and the good fats nuts, avocados & olives; these all keep you full!

3. Eat leafy greens

Leafy greens are a great source of vitamins A & C, minerals and calcium. They are one of the most important vegetable groups you can eat, they are highly nutrient, they help your body detoxify, and have fantastic cancer fighting properties. Kale, spinach, mustard greens, Swiss chard, arugula, dark lettuces, cabbage

4. Stop drinking soda, energy drinks, sugary juices, and sports drinks

First and foremost the sugar in these drinks creates inflammation in your body (the root of all dis-ease). They also contain chemicals, food dyes, and are terrible for you, diet or regular they are all addictive and terrible, STOP.

5. Eat organic, pasture raised or grass fed meats

Conventional raised animals are fed GMO corn(Franken-food), meat by-products, antibiotics, hormones, and even garbage at times. Their diet is terrible. Why? so they can keep costs low, so you as the consumer pay for this. The conditions these animals are raised in, are horrendous.You are what you eat! Choose, local, organic, pasture raised and/or grass fed meats. Dependent on your region look you may find one or a combination of those options. Find a local butcher who can fill you in on the local farms.

6. Eat brazil nuts and pumpkin seeds

Two Brazil nuts a day are equal to about 100 mcg of  selenium, which is a sperm booster! It’s a key nutrient that improves motility and sperm quality. Pumpkin seeds or Pepitos are high in zinc, add these to a salad or sprinkle over vegetables. Zinc is an important nutrient in sperm development, prostate health, and immune system boosting.

7. Stop Eating Sugar (High Fructose Corn Syrup, Fructose, Agave, etc…)

Sugar is as addictive as cocaine. It’s highly inflammatory, will fuck up your whole system, and is a bitch of a habit to break. There is no nutritional value in sugar. It’s linked to heart disease (yes the real reason for heart disease, not good fats). The fact of the matter is there are typically a hell of a lot of other chemicals and crapola ingredients that go along with anything that contains sugar. So avoid the foods that contain it as well, and you will dramatically clean up your nutritional intake.The more you balance your meals with good fat, adequate clean protein, and vegetables, the easier it will be to break the sugar cravings.

Are there other things you can do for sperm?

Yes, there are many, but biting off small chunks at a time, and improving your nutrition is KEY to improving you health. Let’s start here. You might even bite off one step at a time, work on it for 3-5 weeks, when you have nailed it. Move to the next step. Small steps create the greatest success.  Watch my blog for additional articles on rockin’ your sperm in the future.

Sources http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/03/08/7-surprising-sperm- killers-that- could-leave- men-shooting- blanks.aspx http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12623744?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_Results http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/09/30/pumpkin-seed-benefits.aspx