Sperm growth cycle

Everyone knows about sperm, but many people know little about it. Especially for some couples who are preparing to have children, in order to increase the chance of conception, they have sex more frequently. In fact, this will lead to incomplete sperm growth and affect the chance of conception. Many people don't know that the growth cycle of sperm takes 90 working days.

Unlike various cells in the body, sperms are derived from spermatogonia in the testicles. After multiple divisions, one spermatogonia develops into 256 sperms, and it takes three months from discharge to maturity. Do you think this is too long? Many people's impression of sperms should refer to the time from sperm birth to ejaculation. Doctors explain that adult men actually produce sperm every day. Each gram of testicular tissue can produce 300-600 sperms per second, which means that the testicles on both sides can produce hundreds of millions of sperms every day.

These sperms are not produced and ejaculated directly, but go through a development stage, which takes 74-76 days to develop into tadpole shape. At this time, the sperm discharged from the testicles, although they look formed, are not yet fully mature. They must mature in the process of passing through the epididymis, and this process takes another 14-16 days. Therefore, if you want to have a healthy baby, it is absolutely the right choice to start "closing the mountains and cultivating forests" three months in advance.

Generally speaking, the number of sperm in the male epididymis is in a dynamic equilibrium state. Mature sperm are produced every day, and aging sperm are constantly swallowed. If the expectant father has sex for 6 days, the sperm discharged on the seventh day will be immature sperm.

Although there are a lot of sperm, not all of them are mature and healthy. Therefore, prospective fathers need to take more care. Currently, many drugs on the market solve certain problems for men while also affecting their reproductive function and may even cause male infertility.

1. Drugs that inhibit spermatogenesis

If men take large doses of glucocorticoids, androgens, anti-androgens, estrogens, progestins and testosterone propionate, it will inhibit the secretion of pituitary gonadotropin, thereby inhibiting the spermatogenic function of the testicles. Usually it will return to normal after the drug is stopped. Common drugs include dichlorodiamide, dinitropyrrole, nitrofuran, anti-cancer alkylating agents, cottonseed extracted from cotton pol, etc.

2. Drugs that affect sperm maturation

This type of drug mainly affects sperm maturation and loss of fertilization ability, such as the anti-androgen compound methylchlormadinone acetate and the use of chloroglycerol drugs. The diuretic spironolactone has anti-androgen effects in some tissues; the pharmacological toxicity of the antibiotic nitrofurantoin also directly affects sperm quality.

3. Drugs that reduce or even prevent ejaculation

Guanethidine and thioridazine are drugs for treating hypertension, but they can also reduce the amount of ejaculation or even lead to no ejaculation; pheniramine and chlorpromazine can inhibit the ejaculation reflex and delay ejaculation, both of which have extremely adverse effects on men.

Therefore, if the expectant father has used the above drugs while preparing for pregnancy, he should consider preparing for pregnancy after stopping the drugs for 3 months.

Since the life cycle of sperm is so long, when is the quality of sperm the best? Sperm stays in the testicle for about 70 days and in the epididymis for about 2-3 weeks. When mature sperm is stored to a certain extent, it will produce the desire to ejaculate, and then ejaculate through the posterior urethral high pressure. Some reproductive experts point out that the period of testicular activity in men is within 2-7 days after sperm maturity. These days can be said to be the "prime period" of sperm, followed by old age and death. For prospective fathers who are preparing to have a baby, it is actually the best choice to ejaculate once every 7 days to ensure the activity of sperm.

From the perspective of male development, although men have basically taken shape at the age of 25, the sperm of men at this age is still in the primary stage, and the DNA information contained in the sperm is not perfect. When men reach the age of 30, the quality of sperm will reach its peak, and the genetic information contained is of the highest quality and the most active. Therefore, doctors suggest that although men are still capable of being fathers at the age of 90, from the perspective of eugenics, it is not advisable to exceed 35 years old, and the quality of sperm after the age of 35 will also show a downward trend.