It is evident that the male population is getting less fertile overtime, in fact there has been a significant decrease in semen parameters over the last several decades. There are many hypotheses about why this is happening. One of those is environmental exposures, especially those linked to advancements in industrialization and technology. Two of the most common pieces of technology, which are typically kept in very close proximity to the male reproductive organs are laptops on the lap and cell phones in front pockets. It is well established that laptops emit heat and both devices emit high frequency electromagnetic radiation. The question is how clinically relevant these exposures are and are they actually making men less fertile. Dr. Parviz Kavoussi published a review article where he assessed the data in over 50 research studies in the medical literature evaluating the impact of cell phones and laptops on sperm in animal, in vitro, and human models. Dr. Kavoussi concluded, “After performing this exhaustive review of the literature, unfortunately, the answer is still up for debate. There is not a definitive answer on how impactful these exposures are for male fertility, but my recommendation for couples that are struggling to conceive is to have variables out of the equation, so not keeping these devices on one’s body may be beneficial”.
