There’s growing awareness that a man’s health impacts his fertility, his partner’s pregnancy and the wellbeing of his future kids. Now, motivation to improve preconception health has been given a social media-driven rebrand: spermmaxxing. Spermmaxxing is the act of optimising sperm quality and male reproductive health through habits ranging from evidence-based to… well, kind of bonkers. So here’s what you need to know about spermmaxxing, what improves sperm quality and some advice on preconception health you can actually trust.
What is spermmaxxing?
“Maxxing” is a gaming term for “maximising” and it’s become part of a broader trend in online culture where people try to optimise everything from fibre intake (fibremaxxing) to physical appearance (looksmaxxing). Understandably then, spermmaxxing (also known as nutmaxxing or fertilitymaxxing) refers to the practice of optimising sperm quality and overall fertility.
“It’s a good thing that men are taking responsibility for their reproductive health, in the knowledge that not only is it relevant to them as fathers, but relevant to their child’s health too,” says reproductive medicine specialist and Healthy Male’s Medical Director, Prof Rob Mclachlan AM.
““Improving your health also means you’ll be around to kick that footy long after your child is born.””
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However, some of the content around spermmaxxing can range from unhelpful to harmful. At a glance, many of this spermmaxxing content includes the evidence-based basics like getting enough quality sleep, quitting smoking and recreational drugs and reducing stress. But plenty of advice veers into misinformation – promoting bone broth, cutting seed oils and even tanning your balls (which is likely to have a negative impact on your fertility, if any).
“In these cases, their motivation, as a general rule, is commercial,” Prof McLachlan says about some content creators. “If you want to sell things, you have to sell to somebody and so they create a greater sense of need and emergency for the person reading it, for no other reason than it’s going to make them money.”
Check who’s giving you advice — if they’re selling a supplement or program, get a second opinion.
Understanding sperm health
Your fertility generally depends on the quantity and quality of your sperm. If the number of sperm you ejaculate is low, or if the sperm are of a poor quality, it will be difficult, and in some cases impossible, to get pregnant.
Infertility is typically defined as not conceiving a pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular, unprotected sex. Male infertility can be caused by issues with sperm, including:
These can be caused by blockages in your reproductive tract, certain health conditions and behaviours that might be changed like smoking, poor diet and carrying extra weight.
What actually works — the science-backed strategies for sperm quality
As always, its relatively boring stuff that can make the biggest impact.
“When you’re thinking about becoming a father, that’s a great opportunity to get to grips with your general health,” Prof McLachlan says. “Quit smoking, improve your diet, exercise and manage underlying health conditions, these are the big ones.”
Eat well
Fresh whole foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants (vitamin E, vitamin C, beta-carotene, selenium, zinc, cryptoxanthin, and lycopene), vitamin D and folate support better sperm quality. Processed meats, sugary foods, and those high in saturated and trans fats work against it. Dietary supplements for improving fertility are widely marketed but the evidence behind them is limited.
Get moving
Regular exercise supports healthy hormone levels, blood flow and sperm quality — aim for 30 minutes of moderate activity most days, plus two sessions of strengthening exercise per week. That said, more isn’t always better: excessive endurance training can lower testosterone, reduce sperm quality and contribute to infertility.
Maintain a healthy weight
Carrying excess weight can reduce both sperm count and quality, with obese men significantly more likely to have a low sperm count or produce no sperm at all. The encouraging news is that losing weight — and keeping it off — has been shown to improve sperm health.
Quit smoking
Smoking damages the DNA in sperm, lowers sperm count, semen volume and motility, and even light smoking (fewer than 10 cigarettes a day) has measurable effects on fertility. It can also reduce the success of assisted reproductive treatments like IVF, and smoking around the time of conception is linked to increased risk of childhood leukaemia in offspring.
Cut back on alcohol
Occasional drinking appears unlikely to affect fertility, but heavy or regular alcohol consumption can reduce sperm quality, volume and hormone levels, and may also affect libido and erectile function. Reducing intake benefits both fertility and general health.
Avoid recreational drugs
Anabolic steroids, marijuana, cocaine and heroin can all lower sperm count and quality. Long-term steroid use in particular can have lasting fertility consequences.
Check your medications
If you’re taking prescription medication — particularly for pain, depression, anxiety or cancer — speak with your doctor about any potential impact on fertility.
Reduce stress
Chronic stress disrupts the hormones responsible for sperm production. Managing it — through exercise, mindfulness or professional support — can benefit both your mental health and your fertility.
Minimise exposure to harmful chemicals
Pesticides, herbicides, heavy metals or chemicals in everyday plastics can interfere with hormones and sperm quality. You can’t avoid every environmental toxin, but reducing exposure where practical is worthwhile.
Get checked for STIs
Chlamydia and gonorrhoea can cause infertility if left untreated, and many STIs produce no symptoms. Screening is important even in monogamous relationships, and most infections are straightforward to treat.
Keep your testes cool
The testes sit outside the body because sperm production requires a temperature around 1.5–2°C below core body temperature. Prolonged hot baths and saunas are worth avoiding if you’re trying to conceive.
Can I protect my fertility if I ice my balls in the sauna?
Men have started using ice packs to keep their testicles closer to their normal, lower-than-body temperature while in a sauna. Theoretically it could help protect sperm production by combating high heat but there’s no evidence that this works.
Manage underlying health conditions
Conditions ranging from diabetes to Klinefelter syndrome can affect male fertility, sometimes without obvious symptoms. Identifying and managing them with your doctor is one of the most impactful things you can do for both your reproductive and overall health.
What doesn’t work
There are plenty of things you might be encouraged to do or products you might be encouraged to buy to boost sperm quality. Here are some of the biggest spermmaxxing myths to bust.
Although fertility and preconception health is something you can be proactive about and there are habits that can help, in 77% of cases infertility is unexplained. Spermmaxxing can create an expectation that you should be doing something and if you’re not doing it, you’re doing a bad job.
“The majority of men with very low sperm count, it’s because of things they can’t control,” says Prof McLachlan.
“Men are quick to quietly find a sense of guilt, ‘it must be something I’ve done wrong’. You don’t want to heighten that by giving them a sense of guilt or despair or blame.”
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When to get tested
About one in nine Australian couples experience fertility problems, with male factors playing a role in roughly half of all cases.
If you’ve been trying for over a year (or six months if your female partner is over 35) chat to your GP. You and your partner need to get your fertility investigated at the same time. There are various treatments available depending on what’s causing the issue, and many couples go on to have healthy babies after fertility challenges.
First, your doctor will discuss your medical history, ask about past experiences of injury or infection, whether you’re on any medication and your family history. There is a range of medical conditions that impact male fertility, that you may or may not know you have. Working with your doctor to identify and manage them can improve your overall health and your chances of conception. In your appointment with your doctor, they’ll do a physical examination to look and feel for any abnormalities that could cause infertility like small testes (which can indicate Klinefelter syndrome) or a varicocele.
Your GP will then refer you to have a semen analysis. This involves examination of your semen under a microscope to determine the number of sperm, their size and shape and their movement. But it can’t tell us how sperm will function.
The takeaway
It’s positive to see that men are being more proactive about their preconception health, but fearmongering and misinformation can cause unnecessary stress. “Do everything that you can reasonably do,” says Prof Rob McLachlan. “But it’s entirely possible that there’s nothing you can do, don’t develop an obsession over it.”
