Vitamin D gets the sperm moving

Preliminary studies have shown the certain levels of vitamin D serum help with sperm motility. It has been known for many years that this was true for animals, but research from the University of Copenhagen and Copenhagen University Hospital confirm that it’s true for human males as well.

The new study, published in Human Reproduction, looked at 300 healthy men and found a positive correlation between the percentage of motile sperm and the level of serum vitamin D. Additionally, they found that forward motion of the sperm could be encouraged when activated vitamin D was introduced into their environment.

“Our study is not sufficient and should not be used to change existing treatment practices,” explained Martin Blomberg Jensen from Copenhagen University Hospital. “However, it uncovers some of the functions of vitamin D and generates new hypotheses. This is an intriguing finding, because it suggests that vitamin D has an effect on sperm movement and function. . . This is one in a line of studies indicating that vitamin D is necessary for male reproduction.”

Many factors may improve sperm quality, but none have presented a compelling enough case to become a standard medical treatment. “Low semen quality may have numerous causes, but it often has a fetal origin similar to some male genital malformations and testicular cancer. However, this study indicates that factors in adult life may also play a role for semen quality,” says Professor Anders Juuls from the University of Copenhagen.

Source: Human Reproduction, ScienceDaily