Before I ever tried to conceive a baby, I used to watch the TV show Coach. The main characters, Hayden and Christine, tried to have a baby. After going through diagnostic tests, they learned that Hayden had a low sperm count. The doctor told him to switch from briefs to boxers, stay out of hot tubs, and do other things to keep his swimmers “cool.”
I thought this storyline was rather funny, but I did not know whether it was based in reality. I just thought it was an amusing comment, leading to some of the funniest episodes of the series.
A few years later, hub and I were the ones going through diagnostic testing and learning that hub’s sperm count was low. I was surprised to hear the urologist say the same things: Switch to boxers, and stay out of hot tubs.
When the testicles get too hot, they pull away from the body to cool off the sperm. If the sperm gets too hot, then they can start dying off. We learned that this can happen from a number of causes, including wearing briefs, spending too much time in hot tubs, getting too hot while exercising, and by running fevers.
Switching to briefs can be a big adjustment for men who have always worn boxers. The briefs can make them feel like “everything is hanging out.” However, it is a small sacrifice to make in the quest to conceive a baby.
Hub and I found it ironic that heavy exercising could cause a man to have a lower sperm count. Generally speaking, men who exercise regularly have more muscular bodies and look more “manly,” so people would assume that they were fertile. We found it ironic that skinny men with little muscle tone or very overweight men could actually be more fertile than those who worked out regularly due to this issue.
The television show Coach capitalized on this irony. In one episode, Christine talked Hayden into going on her TV news show to talk about his low sperm count “with other men just like you.” The episode ended with several men who clearly did not exercise often saying, “I’m ____, and I have a low sperm count,” followed by Hayden lying about his identity.
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Photo credit: Lynda Bernhardt
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