Contents
Heated seats in the car mean greater driving comfort, and car dealers tempt with promotions. When it’s freezing outside, getting into an icy car is no fun.
Unfortunately, any pleasure comes at a price. In this case, you can pay not only with cash, but also with your own fertility. The heated armchair weakens sperm.
Optimal testicular temperature
Sperm like cold. They feel best at a temperature of about 1-2 degrees C lower than the body temperature, that is 34,4 degrees Celsius. Therefore, the structure of male genitalia is used to maintain an appropriate temperature in the place of sperm production and storage. Probably everyone, when he was hit with a ball on the pitch, wondered why the Creator did not hide his organs somewhere in the middle of the torso. The answer is simple – to allow the sperm to cool down. The task of the scrotum is to keep the testicles at an optimal temperature. It is lined with an elastic membrane which, when overheated, expands to increase the cooling surface. It works the opposite when the temperature is too low. We know very well how much the testicles can shrink, for example during bathing in the Baltic Sea. A muscle called testicular levator also helps to contract the testicles. When it is cold, it brings them closer to the inside of the body.
The effects of overheating the testicles
A German scientist from the University of Giessen decided to investigate how sperm felt in a luxurious car with heated seats. He placed thermometers on the scrotum of 30 healthy men who were to sit on heated armchairs for 90 minutes. Within an hour, the average temperature of the scrotum increased to 37,3 degrees C. The temperature was repeated by drivers who did not have heated seats – it was 36,7 degrees C. The researcher found that exposing the testicles to heat leads to a significant deterioration of sperm quality . Importantly, it was also noted that even a slight increase in scrotal temperature may be sufficient to affect sperm quality. Meanwhile, sitting in the car for a long time, even without heated seats, causes a rise in temperature in the scrotum. Research suggests that couples with a man in the car more than three hours a day have difficulty conceiving.
Structure and role of sperm
Testicular overheating and male infertility
Australian researchers at the Bourn Hall Clinic in Cambridgeshire believe that long sunbathing in fitted swimming trunks also reduces sperm count. They also noticed that the habit of regularly bathing in hot water could prove fatal for sperm. A similar effect is caused by holding a laptop on your lap or wearing tight underwear. Gynecologist Dr. Jacek Tulimowski notes that the percentage of childless couples due to male infertility increases every year. In his opinion, overheating of the testicles is one of the causes. Dr. Tulimowski adds that while hot baths can affect sperm quality, they certainly should not be used as a contraceptive.
Text: Halina Pilonis