The health life of sperm: See what happens to your sperm in a lifetime

Ladies need to read before getting tangled in marriage.

Teens
Up until the age of 14, your baby-makers aren’t quite ripe enough to fertilise an egg, upping the odds of birth defects and DNA damage in any potential offspring.

20’s
You have more swimmers than at any other age, the majority of which are fighting fit and ready to enter the egg race. The chances of birth defects are at their lowest point here. However, if you want to safeguard your sperm health, now’s the time to get fit; men who do any amount of exercise are 70% less likely to suffer from erectile dysfunction in later life.

30’s
By the time you hit 30 your testosterone levels begin to fall, meaning you produce less sperm and have weaker erections: a man over 35 is twice as likely to be infertile than at 25. There’s also a significant increased risk of sperm DNA damage leading to health problems in potential offspring. Boost your sperm count 74% by avoiding soy products and eating zinc-rich foods such as baked beans and oysters according to the journal Fertility and Sterility.

40’s
Your sperm motility has been steadily decreasing by 0.7% each year since your twenties, while the amount of sperm that begin to swim in circles rather than heading for the egg increases by 3.1% per year. This means that you’ll find it harder, though not impossible, to conceive. However, a vitamin B-12 supplement (1000 mcg taken daily) can increase sperm motility and count.

50’s
According to a New York University study the chances of conceiving a child with birth defects due to DNA-damaged sperm triples – one in 47 children born to a father over 50 has some sort of disability. Lower your odds of DNA damage by avoiding anti-depressants such as Prozac – Cornell Medical Center studies have shown that these damage the sperm by 30%. Eat lots of folate-rich foods such as breakfast cereal, as this prevents birth defects according to University of California

60’s
85% of your sperm are now clinically abnormal, but by now the only hot thing you’ll be interested in going to bed with is a mug of Ovaltine.