Strong swimmers could help men outlive the competition.
New research suggests that those with higher-quality sperm may enjoy nearly three extra years of life compared to their less agile counterparts.
In a nutshell: “The lower the semen quality, the lower the life expectancy,” said Lærke Priskorn, Ph.D., a senior researcher at Copenhagen University Hospital who helped lead the study.
The study, published Wednesday in Human Reproduction, tracked nearly 80,000 men over the course of up to 50 years.
During that time, 8,600 men died. Researchers found that men who produced more than 120 million motile sperm — capable of moving or “swimming” — per ejaculation lived two to three years longer than those with fewer than 5 million.
To put it in perspective, men with top-tier sperm quality lived an average of 80.3 years, while those with the weakest sperm clocked in at 77.6 years.
Researchers noted that the potential link between sperm quality and overall mortality couldn’t be explained by diseases diagnosed in the decade leading up to the tests. It also wasn’t influenced by education level, which can be an indicator of lifestyle factors like smoking, diet and exercise.
The team speculated that poor sperm quality might signal underlying health problems affecting both fertility and overall well-being — potentially offering an early warning sign for future issues.
“We need to better understand the association between semen quality and men’s general health,” said Dr. Niels Jørgensen, chief andrologist at Copenhagen University Hospital and lead researcher on the study.
“However, this study suggests that we can identify subgroups of men with impaired semen quality who are apparently healthy when their semen quality is assessed, but who are at increased risk of developing certain diseases later in life.”
The researchers now aim to explore whether poor sperm quality is linked to earlier deaths from specific causes like cancer or heart disease. They also want to identify relevant biomarkers to help pinpoint subgroups of men at increased risk.
“This is key to initiating relevant prevention strategies,” Jørgensen said.
‘Canaries in the coal mine’
John Aitken, a biologist and distinguished professor emeritus at the University of Newcastle in Australia, who wasn’t part of the study, called it a “landmark” publication.
“In men, it appears to be their semen profile that is providing the most significant information concerning their future health and wellbeing,” Aitken wrote in an editorial published alongside the study.
He then raised a thought-provoking question: “If spermatozoa really are the canaries in the coal mine of male health, the obvious question to ask is, why?”
Aitken theorized that oxidative stress could be playing a role.
Oxidative stress is an imbalance between unstable molecules called free radicals and antioxidants in the body.
When free radicals are functioning properly, they help protect us from infections. But when their numbers get out of control, they can damage cells and tissues throughout the body.
This speeds up the aging process and could contribute to health issues like diabetes, cancer and Alzheimer’s.
“Any factor (genetic, immunological, metabolic, environmental or lifestyle) that enhances overall levels of oxidative stress, could reasonably be expected to drive changes in the semen profile and subsequent patterns of mortality,” Aitken wrote.
Aitken also said this connection might explain why pregnancy complications, like preeclampsia and gestational diabetes, are linked to higher female mortality later in life.
“Perhaps, for both genders, the secret to achieving both high [fertility] and healthy ageing, is to monitor oxidative stress and adopt measures to maintain a balanced redox state,” he wrote.
To keep free radicals in check, boost your intake of antioxidant-rich foods like cranberries, broccoli, carrots and leafy greens. Managing stress, cutting back on sun exposure and avoiding smoking and excessive alcohol consumption can also help reduce free radical production.
