Improving Male Infertility with Acupuncture, Herbal Medicine, & Supplements (Part 2)
In our Part 1 Blog for Male Factor Infertility, we have already covered “What is Male Infertility”, its role in how it contributes to infertility challenges for couples, the various types of testing to get before trying to conceive, the potential causes and factors contributing to Male Factor Infertility, and much more. Now, it is time for the fun information for Improving Male Infertility with Acupuncture, Herbal Medicine, & Supplements. We will cover how TCM, Traditional Chinese Medicine approaches Male Infertility, explain how Acupuncture & Herbal Medicine can Support Male Factor Infertility, some basic nutrition recommendations, lifestyle adjustments, and an outline of supplements for basic Male Fertility to improve Sperm health.
While having the diagnosis and completed testing performed by a Reproductive Health Specialist can be helpful to know the overall sperm health and functionality alongside male hormone and thyroid health; Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) can be used as a stand alone treatment for improving Male Factor Infertility, or alongside REI. TCM looks at the environment and vitality within the body, while considering outside influences that may throw off the balance of health. When diagnosing Male Factor Infertility, TCM practitioners and Licensed Acupuncturist consider the organ relationships, the functionality of the fluids such as sperm, determining any obstructions and blocks for health, and reviewing the mind-body connection via stress management and emotional health.
In TCM, the sperm health relies on three aspects: the essence made from the Kidneys, the flow of qi (oxygen and gases across the tissues) from the Liver, and flow of qi and blood. The kidneys help produce our sex hormones, stress hormones, and much more. When we are stressed, our Liver qi becomes overpowering to other systems, or becomes stuck. There is a major channel known as the Liver meridian that connects to the pelvis and reproductive area. When the Liver is stressed, or congested, it cannot filter all the blood to take out waste products such as used stress and sex hormones, or help convert our energy stores when needed. This can influence digestive health creating gut inflammation and decreasing the ability to absorb the essential nutrients from food and supplements for quality sperm.
The Kidneys play a fundamental role in sperm and male health include the ability to create quality of sperm, the ability to maintain/hold an erection, and complete ejaculation with male orgasm. This ability to release will help relieve tension in the pelvis, which improves sperm health and quality. When inquiring about Male Reproductive health, we are looking at strength of libido (too much, or too little), the ability to hold an erection and ejaculate, the quality of sperm (health, count, motility, etc) via Semen analysis, is there a history of vasectomy reversal, or scar tissue, is there abnormal discharge/swellings, past/current history of STD’s/STI’s, are there any torsion of the scrotum, and much more. After completely a thorough intake, the Acupuncturist usually will customize a treatment plan with the goal to improve Sperm health and improve chances of pregnancy for the intending couple.
How Can Acupuncture & Herbal Medicine Help Improve Male Factor Infertility? Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine can help in many ways to improve Male Factor Infertility. They can improve the number of sperm count, increase the motility of sperm (the ability to move and navigate in uterus), and increase the percentage of viable sperm. If there are Antisperm Antibodies present, Acupuncture and herbs can help decrease the antibodies by 90% compared to oral prednisone at 64% decrease (3, 4). Sometimes Antisperm antibodies can develop from a vasectomy and still be present after the reversal. There was a small study that has found herbal medicine decrease variocele by 80% and increase sperm count by 70%.
How Can TCM be used alongside REI? Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) can be used safely alongside REI such as IVF, IUI, and ICSI (Intracytoplasmic sperm injection). It takes about 64 to 72 days to make new sperm. Acupuncture and herbal medicine can be used as preparation to improve sperm health 2-3 months before the scheduled sperm collection to be used in IVF, IUI, or ICSI. Using Acupuncture alongside the ICSI procedure helps improve fertilization by 66% (8). Herbal medicine used alongside IUI with the focus of decreasing the Antisperm Antibodies helps improve to 41 % pregnancy rate compared to IUI along with 11% change of pregnancy rate (8).
Basic Nutrition for Sperm Health? There is not diet that is one size fits all. Everyone has individual needs. I would recommend thinking of any nutritional adjustment as lifestyle adjustments that are being used for long-term gain for yourself and the potential baby you are planning for. Keeping nutrition simple is key. Fruits, vegetables, lean meats, higher protein, healthy fats, decrease sugars/processed foods, good hydration with electrolytes, and decreasing alcohol intake are some guidelines. Try to have your plate be half vegetables, quarter protein, and a quarter healthy fat (ghee, avocado, olives, etc). Fruits are high in antioxidants such as berries and serve great as a snack. Protein bars in moderation are good if more protein and keto based NOT sugar and carb based. Avoid soy products because they can lower sperm concentration (7). The goal of whole food based nutrition and quality supplements is to increase antioxidant (2).
Basic Supplements for Sperm Health: There are tons of Male Prenatals on the market. The basic recommendation is to avoid Walmart, Target, and Costco type of supplements because of lower quality and fillers used. The same applies to being cautious on what you buy on Amazon. Sprouts, Health food stores, Take Your Vitamins (Gilbert, AZ) are some local referrals I would recommend. There are professional grade supplements that can be purchased from the provider in some practices. It recommended to keep supplements to 3-5 per day maximum so the Liver is not overworked with processing them alongside the digestion. Here is an outline of some essentials within the Male Prenatal, or additional supplements that can be added:
Vitamin C with bioflavonoids: 1,000-3,000 mg 3 times day for 3 months
Vitamin E with tocopherols: start with 200 IU/Day
Vitamin B complex: make sure vitamin B12 is methylcobalamin and folate is methylated (6).
Zinc: 80 mg with 3 mg of copper daily for 6 months; then, reduce zinc to 30 mg (6).
coenzyme CoQ10: 200 mg
Selenium: 200-400 mg daily; especially if thyroid is imbalanced
What does treatment for Male Factor Infertility look like? Treatment plans are customize to the individual’s and couples’ needs. It is usually recommended to prepare and complete a treatment plan for 4 months before trying to conceive either naturally, or planned REI. If the couple already has ICSI, IUI, or IVF, scheduled due to male factor infertility, it is best to complete a 6 week intense treatment plan including Acupuncture and 3-6 months of targeted herbal medicine and supplement therapy BEFORE the procedure. It is always recommended to have a semen analysis complete before starting a treatment plan and to conduct another semen analysis after the completion of treatment to compare before and after numbers. We do offer couple treatments where we can treatment the male partner before the ovulation window to improve conception outcome for natural conception.
For more information, feel free to schedule a consultation with our Licensed Acupuncturist at 480.690.8933.
Remember this is for educational purposes and does not replace medical advice given by a Medical Doctor, or Licensed Acupuncturist/Herbalist.
Resources:
Sperm numbers and Acupuncture:
Qian, Z [Clinical observation of 54 cases of male infertility treated by acupuncture and moxibustion] Journal of Chinese Medicine, 1996 Sep; 52.
Zhang J [The Acupuncture treatment of 248 cases of male infertility], Chinese Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Vol 7, 1987.
2. Mechanisms of male infertility: role of antioxidants. Sheweita SA, Tilmisan AM, Al-Sawaf H. Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, PO Box 30001, Tailbah University, Madinah, Saudi Arabia.
3. “Clinical study on the treatment of male immune infertility by Huzhangdanshenyin”. Lu TK et al. 2006 Aug;12(8):750-5. Department of Andrology, Xiamen TCM Hospital Affiliated to Fujian TCM College, Xiamen, Fujian 361001, China.
4. Effects of the combined therapy of acupuncture with herbal drugs on male immune infertility--a clinical report of 50 cases. Fu B, Lun X, Gong Y. Department of Acupuncture, Second Guangdong Provincial Worker's Hospital, Guangzhou 510720, China.
5. “Effect of Acupuncture on Sperm Parameters of Males Suffering from Subfertility Related to Low Sperm Quality”. Sherman, S. et al. Affiliations: a Institute of Chinese Medicine, Tel Aviv, Israel b Male Fertility Laboratory, Department of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel. DOI: 10.3109/01485019708987914 Publication Frequency: 6 issues per year Published in: journal Systems Biology in Reproductive Medicine, Volume 39, Issue 2 September 1997 , pages 155 - 161 Subject: Reproductive Medicine; Formats available: PDF (English) Previously published as: Archives of Andrology (0148-5016, 1521-0375) until 2008.
6. Human Reproduction (advance access) Doi:10.1093/humrep/den036 "The association of folate, zinc and antioxidant intake with sperm aneuploidy in healthy non-smoking men" Authors: S S Young, B Eskenazi, FM Marchetti, G Block, and AJ Wyrobek
7. “Soy food and isoflavone intake in relation to semen quality parameters among men from an infertility clinic”. http://www.acubalance.ca/content/soy-food-and-isoflavone-intake-relation-semenquality-parameters-among-men-infertility-clinic
8. “Influence of acupuncture on idiopathic male infertility in assisted reproductive technology”. Zhang M - J Huazhong Univ Sci Technolog Med Sci - 01-JAN-2002; 22(3): 228-30 From NIH/NLM MEDLINE NLM Citation ID: 12658811 (PubMed) Full Source Title: Journal of Huazhong University of Science and Technology Publication Type: Journal Article Language: English Author Affiliation: Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030. Authors: Zhang M; Huang G; Lu F; Paulus WE; Sterzik K
9. Jane Lyttleton Course “Male Infertility: The Treatment of Male Infertility”. 1/2021. CEU course.
10. image link: https://www.news-medical.net/news/20191216/Important-discovery-about-male-infertility-could-lead-to-new-treatments.aspx