Smoking Cannabis May Boost Sperm Count in Men
[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]A[/dropcap]ccording to surprising results in a new study, smoking cannabis may boost the sperm count in men. The study, “Marijuana smoking and markers of testicular function among men from a fertility centre,” was published on Feb. 6 in the medical journal Human Reproduction.
For the study, investigators measured the sperm counts of over 600 men that go to a fertility clinic with their partners. The team collected 1,143 semen samples from 662 men between 2000 and 2017 and analyzed the data. The research team assumed they would find lower sperm counts based on past studies, but instead found higher sperm counts.
The results indicated that men who had smoked cannabis had average sperm concentrations of 62.7 million sperm per mL, while those who had never smoked cannabis had average concentrations of 45.4 million/mL. That means non-smokers had only 72% of the average sperm concentrations found in the men who smoke cannabis—quite a difference.
Dr Jorge Chavarro from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts is among the study’s lead researchers. “These unexpected findings highlight how little we know about the reproductive health effects of marijuana, and in fact of the health effects of marijuana in general,” Chavarro told Bloomberg. “Our results need to be interpreted with caution and they highlight the need to further study the health effects of marijuana use.”
Investigators also noticed that cannabis consumption led to higher levels of testosterone, while could explain the higher sperm counts.
The results, however, are not conclusive. Some of the researchers added the stipulation that there is more than one explanation for the higher sperm counts. “An equally plausible interpretation is that our findings could reflect the fact that men with higher testosterone levels are more likely to engage in risk-seeking behaviors, including smoking marijuana,” Dr Feiby Nassan told The Independent. More research is needed to determine any conclusive theories or results.
