Beware: Laptops could make you infertile!

UK resident Scott Reed was finding it hard to conceive. The reason: Sperm damage due to laptop heat. After receiving the doc’s advice Reed started using his laptop on the table instead and three mo

By: Admin | | Updated: November 6, 2012 3:57 pm

laptop-sperm UK resident Scott Reed was finding it hard to conceive. The reason: Sperm damage due to laptop heat. After receiving the doc’s advice Reed started using his laptop on the table instead and three months later his wife was pregnant, the Daily Mail reported. ‘I’ve never heard of this happening before, when the doctors told us it was a real shock,’ Laura said.‘Scott would use his laptop in the evenings for a couple of hours on and off while we were watching television. He would use it for work and general things like Facebook. We had absolutely no idea the damage it was causing him,’ she said. Also Read - Secret handshake' detected between sperm and uterus

The couple visited their doctor after trying for a baby for six months without success. Initially, Scott’s fertility was attributed to an old bout of mumps, which he suffered when he was 21. ‘You don’t think it will be that hard to get pregnant. We both went back to have a chat and the doctor put Scott forward for a fertility test,’ she said. The couple were then referred to a hospital for tests, which revealed Scott was producing a healthy amount of sperm but they had suffered heat damage. Also Read - Human sperm retains viability in outer space conditions

The heat had actually caused the tail of the sperm to coil around the head, meaning it couldn’t fast enough affecting its motility. Biomedical andrologist Sue Kenworthy, from Queen Alexandra Hospital, confirmed the heat of the laptop can have an effect on sperm. Also Read - Decoding the link between sperm DNA damage and miscarriages

‘Scott had been producing a healthy amount of sperm but looking under a microscope I saw that there was heat damage,’ she said. ‘Scott was using his laptop every day and for a few hours. It would get really hot, which would have an effect on his sperm,’

‘This showed up under the microscope. The tail of the sperm had coiled around the head. ‘This means it can’t swim quickly and get to the egg. I would say men should place the laptop on a table, rather than on their lap, as this can make a difference,’ Kenworthy said.

‘We carried on trying and we weren’t having any luck. We thought it wasn’t going to happen so we started planning a trip to travel around Thailand. But then I did a test and found out I was expecting,’ Laura said.

Published : November 6, 2012 3:42 pm | Updated:November 6, 2012 3:57 pm

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