What is male infertility?

Infertility is a common issue these days. Almost 10% of the couples are facing difficulty in conceiving. Male infertility is defined as inability to have a child after one or more year of unprotected sexual intercourse.

Vajikarana (andrology and eugenic) is one of the important branch of ayurveda. Charaka Samhita, Susruta samhita etc are the only source to practice andrology from. Retasa is the most suitable term for semen in ayurveda.

What causes infertility in men?

According to the ancient ayurvedic text, causes of infertility in men are-
Ativyavayat i.e indulging in sexual activities
Avyayamat – being lazy, staying in one place
Vyayamat – excessive physical exertion or mental stress
Asatmaya annam– intake of spicy, salted, frozen- preserved food, low nutrition diet and lifestyle disorder leads to aggravated rakta and pitta doha, this affects the quality and quantity of shukra dhatu.

Fear, stress, tight clothing, working in hot environment, smoking, alcohol etc are male infertility causes. These causes are also mentioned in modern medicine. A normal male reproductive health is a result of normal functioning of the male reproductive system. According to the research there are increasing number of male infertility due to environmental pollution, stress and lifestyle. There are many causes of infertility in men arising due to lifestyle disorder. We shall discuss only the most common cause of male infertility.

MENTAL STRESS–
During stress the autonomic nervous system and adrenal hormones affect the reproductive system in males. Studies have revealed that mild to severe emotional stress decreases the testosterone level and hence interferes with the formation of sperms.

HIGHER TEMPERATURE IN THE SCROTUM–
The testicular temperature is slightly less than the body temperature and is ideal for sperm production. Increase in temperature of testicular region affects the formation of the sperm. Wearing tight fitting underwear, work environment, fever is associated with high scrotal temperature.

SMOKING
The evidence suggests the connection between smoking and erectile dysfunction.


ALCOHOL
Alcohol intake decreases the testosterone level, leads to loss of libido and reduces the quality and quantity of sperms. Alcohol stops liver from proper metabolism of vitamin A and hinders the zinc absorption. Vitamin A has a crucial role in sperm in sperm development and zinc deficiency leads to low sperm count. Thus alcohol drastically affects the reproductive health and has long been associated with reason for male infertility.

Male infertility symptoms

The main symptom of infertility in men is not being able to have a child. Most of the infertile men do not notice signs other than mentioned later. Signs of male infertility may be-
Erectile dysfunction due to hormonal changes
Not able to ejaculate
Pain or swelling in testicles
Hormonal imbalance may lead to loss of libido
Small and firm testicle results in male infertility.

One must visit a male fertility doctor if there is any problems related to sperms or low sperm count, any testicle- prostate or sexual problem in the past, undergoing cancer treatment and any family history with infertility problem.

Types of male infertility

Types of male infertility in ayurveda may be classified according to the respective doshas vata-pitta-kapha. Such as vataja shukradushti, pittaja shukradushti, kaphaja shukra dushti, sannipataja shukradushti.

Male infertility test

Characteristic of healthy shukranu (semen) are said to be liquid, thick, heavy, sweet, unctuous, without any foul smell, viscous, greyish white in color and consistency should be between honey and sesame oil.

Pathological conditions of semen mentioned in ayurveda are- frothy, thin, dry, discolored, hyper viscous, pyospermia, non liquefaction, low volume, smells like urine/feces and and combined with tissue components.

With the help of modern medicine and technology one may diagnose male infertility through-
General physical examination, semen analysis, scrotal ultrasound, hormone test, post ejaculation urinalysis, genetic testing, testicular biopsy, sperm function test and trans-rectal ultrasound.

Male infertility treatment

There is no specific treatment for male infertility in modern science. The available medical treatment is costly, not easy to use, is not efficient and has side effects. Thus there is a growing demand of ayurvedic medicines for male infertility.

Ayurveda is an ancient science that lays stress on healthy diet and lifestyle. Ayurvedic medicine for sperm motility or for any infertility cause, works by removing the toxicity and balancing the doshas. There are number of conducts mentioned in ancient text of ayurveda, following which can help a person remain healthy cure many lifestyle disorders. The conducts mentioned are-
Dincharya
Ritucharya
Ratricharya
Thrayopasthamba palana
Sadvritha
Achara rasayana
Ashtanga yogas

Panchkarma therapy has a crucial role in ayurvedic treatment for male infertility. The therapy is classified into 3 major steps and further sub classified.

1) Preliminary treatment – The step involves oleation and sudation.
2) Main treatment (panchakarma)- includes virechan with castor oil and milk. Sneha basti i.e oil enema. Basti, yapana vasti (rejuvenating enema that can be used for long period without any adverse effects), uttara vasti i.e enema administered through urethral orifice or vagina.
3) Management after main treatment- Vajikarana drugs are mentioned in Charaka Samhita for specific infertility management.

Male infertility medicines and herbs used for vajikarana and shukral purposes are-
Kapikacchu – it is used in ayurvedic treatment for low sperm motility and also increases the sperm concentration.
Gokshura increases the testosterone (male hormone) level.
Ashwagandha- it enhances the spermatogenesis.
Shatavari- it is beneficial in reducing the oxidative stress and enhances the fertility.
Yashtimadhu improves the quality of the semen.

Apart from the above mentioned, best ayurvedic medicines for male infertility there are other medicines prescribed by the best ayurvedic male infertility doctors. To mention, some of them are shilajita rasayana, abhrak bhasma, sukumara ghrita, agnitundi vati, ashwagandha ghritam, chyavanprasha, dashmularishtam, Chandra prabha vati etc.

Ayurvedic drugs that helps in purification of the sperms are kushtha, katphala, samudra phena, vasuka, ikshu etc. Ayurvedic medicines beneficial in sperm formation are jivaka, kakoli, kshirakakoli, meda etc. Such drugs must be given with proper anupan. It can be combined with milk or vakikarana diet that includes milk, rice, urad dal etc.

Ayurvedic male infertility specialists, suggests yoga along with medication enhances the effect and helps in treating infertility. Yoga poses such as legs up the wall pose, easy pose, reclining bound angle are helpful in increasing the fertility.

Natural remedies for men’s fertility

Ayurveda lays emphasis on treating a disease naturally. Natural remedies for male fertility aims in enhancing the sperm quantity, quality and improves the male reproductive health. For proper functioning of male reproductive system, proper diet with required minerals and vitamins is very important.
-One must eat fresh organic fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, fish and seeds.
-Keep yourself hydrated.
– Say NO to processed and refined goods, saturated fats and hydrogenated oils.
– Pumpkin seeds have high zinc with essential fatty acids, which plays a crucial role in functioning of male preoductive hormones.

Dietary supplements such as vitamin B-12,C,E and flaxseed oil, zinc, coenzyme Q 10 etc have shown to increase sperm count and motility. Herbal medicines of high quality have shown significant result in treating male infertility.

Modern medicine is very expensive and has many side effects. This is the reason that more and more couples are inclined towards the natural treatment by mother nature- ‘Ayurveda’. Male infertility treatment cost in ayurveda is affordable and has no side effect. Also the ayurvedic treatment for male infertility comes with significant results.