Overall, one-third of infertility cases are caused by male reproductive issues, one-third by female reproductive issues, and one-third by both male and female reproductive issues or by unknown factors.
Male infertility is caused by multiple factors such as abnormal sperm production, blockage of delivery of sperm or low sperm production. Roughly 15 percent of couples in the United States have trouble conceiving, and over 50 percent of the time, there is a male infertility issue.
Infertility is defined as trying to get pregnant with frequent, unprotected sex for at least a year with no success. Infertility results from female factors about one-third of the time and both female and male factors about one-third of the time.
Infertility affects one in every six couples who are trying to conceive. In at least half of all cases of infertility, a male factor is a major or contributing cause. This means that about 10% of all males in the United States who are attempting to conceive suffer from infertility.
Use of cocaine or marijuana may temporarily reduce the number and quality of your sperm as well. Alcohol use. Drinking alcohol can lower testosterone levels, cause erectile dysfunction and decrease sperm production. Liver disease caused by excessive drinking also may lead to fertility problems.
About 9% of men and about 11% of women of reproductive age in the United States have experienced fertility problems. In one-third of infertile couples, the problem is with the man.
It refers to when a couple have been unable to conceive after 12 months of unprotected sexual intercourse. About one in 6 Australian couples of reproductive age experiences fertility problems.
Infertility is commonly caused by problems with ovulation (the monthly release of an egg from the ovaries). Some problems stop an egg being released at all, while others prevent an egg being released during some cycles but not others. Ovulation problems can be a result of: polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
Understanding your menstrual cycle
You're most fertile at the time of ovulation (when an egg is released from your ovaries), which usually occurs 12 to 14 days before your next period starts. This is the time of the month when you're most likely to get pregnant.
Men can produce sperm from puberty to a ripe old age and continue to father children as long as they do so. Women, on the other hand, have a limited fertile window. Past 51 – the average age of menopause – they cease to release any eggs and become infertile. Both men and women are delaying having children.
Not all male infertility is permanent or untreatable; it is not uncommon for men to treat infertility through one or a combination of actions.
Although most men are able to have children well into their 50s and beyond, it becomes gradually more difficult after the age of 40 . There are many reasons for this, including: Sperm quality tends to decrease with age.
A woman's peak reproductive years are between the late teens and late 20s. By age 30, fertility (the ability to get pregnant) starts to decline. This decline becomes more rapid once you reach your mid-30s. By 45, fertility has declined so much that getting pregnant naturally is unlikely for most women.
Being overweight or underweight. Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) Health problems that cause hormonal changes, such as polycystic ovarian syndrome and primary ovarian insufficiency.
How common is female infertility? Infertility is a common disease. At least 10% of women deal with infertility of some kind.
There's only one guaranteed way to conceive a girl, which is a procedure known as sex selection. This in vitro fertilization method (IVF) involves implanting a girl or boy embryo into the mother's uterus. This option, however, is expensive, and even illegal in some countries.
The Odds of Getting Pregnant
For most couples trying to conceive, the odds that a woman will become pregnant are 15% to 25% in any particular month.
The average age of first-time mothers is 29.6 years, up more than a year from the previous decade. One of the biggest influences on that figure is the decline in teenage pregnancy. In 2010, 3.8 per cent of pregnancies were from teenagers. In 2020, it was less than half that.
But male infertility and subfertility is very common. In fact, it affects one in 20 Australian men of reproductive age.
The country's fertility rate, which indicates the average number of children a woman will have in her lifetime, sunk to 0.81 in 2021 – 0.03% lower than the previous year, according to government-run Statistics Korea.
Male fertility generally starts to reduce around age 40 to 45 years when sperm quality decreases. Increasing male age reduces the overall chances of pregnancy and increases time to pregnancy (the number of menstrual cycles it takes to become pregnant) and the risk of miscarriage and fetal death.
More On: fatherhood
And, more broadly, men's desire to have kids has significantly declined. Between 2012 and 2018, the percentage of childless men ages 15 to 49 responding that they did not want children doubled from 9.9% to 20.2%.
Among all adult men, 40.5 percent have no biological children, 37.5 percent have between one and two children, and 22.0 percent have three or more children (see Table 2).