fall of Rome painting
Is the West headed for a 'Fall of Rome'?
Society sees having children as a major life event.

After all, kids - even the annoying ones - are necessary for the survival of our species.

Yet widespread fertility may become the norm, at least in men.

Sperm counts among men in the west have more than halved in the past 40 years, according to research.

No, this is not some horrific dystopia, but a worsening trend in North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

Interestingly, a new systematic study analysing 42,935 men found no signs of sperm count decline in men from Asia, Africa and South America.

Earlier this year, Chris Barrat, Professor of Reproductive Medicine at the University of Dundee, wrote:
If the data on sperm counts is extrapolated to its logical conclusion, men will have little or no reproductive capacity from 2060 onward.
Why is male reproductive health suffering in the West?

Scientists have long warned about disruptive environmental factors and pollutants, and how male foetuses are particularly susceptible to these.

For example, chemicals such as bisphenol A - which is found in many plastics - have been found to damage fertility.

Men have also been warned not to smoke and maintain a healthy weight in order to help avoid becoming infertile.


Comment: Ok, but then why just Western men? Aren't African, Latin American and Asian men exposed to the same factors?


But a low sperm count doesn't necessarily equate to infertility.

And Stefan Schlatt, of the Westfalia Wilhelms University of Munster, told Highsnobiety that the research has not taken every factor into account.

It may make you grimace, but he believes it is important to consider our grandparents' sex lives:
When your grandfather went in to get a semen count, he would take it very seriously and not have an ejaculation in the 5-6 days leading up to the appointment.

This is quite different from people in the Western countries these days.

I believe that the frequency of ejaculations have increased in relation to our grandfathers.
He added that we shouldn't jump to the worst conclusion.
It is quite important to note that the study indicates that something is wrong with our testes and our testes' function.

But it doesn't mean anything beyond that.