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Lee Swanson Research Update
Male Reproductive Health May Benefit from Vitamin D
June 2011
Vitamin D could play a key role in improving male reproductive health, according to a new study from researchers at the University of Copenhagen and Copenhagen University Hospital in Denmark.
The study, conducted in 300 normal men, showed a positive correlation between the percentage of motile sperm and serum vitamin D levels.
Dr. Martin Blomberg Jensen, Department of Growth and Reproduction, Copenhagen University, said: "In animals it is known that vitamin D deficiency results in low sperm count and low sperm motility and if you knock out the vitamin D receptor in mice it results in low sperm motility and low sperm number.
"We have recently shown that the vitamin D receptor and all metabolizing enzymes are expressed in human tests and spermatozoa. Now we show that vitamin D is important for human spermatozoa by showing that activated vitamin D induces sperm motility in the lab…"
Men with high vitamin D levels of up to 75 nmol/l had a significantly higher sperm motility compared with vitamin D-deficient men with up to <25 nmol/l.
But the results are not sufficient to justify changing treatments, said Jensen. "This finding is not sufficient in determining whether vitamin D supplements may improve sperm quality in normal or infertile males. This study is one in a line of studies indicating that vitamin D is necessary for male reproduction."
More research is needed to identify relevant factors and conduct placebo-controlled trials to clarify whether vitamin D supplements are beneficial for infertile men, said the researchers.
Professor Anders Juul, of Copenhagen University Hospital’s Department of Growth and Reproduction, said: "Low semen quality may have numerous causes, but it often has a fetal origin similar to some male genital malformations. However, this study indicates that factors in adult life may also play a role for semen quality."
The semen quality of Danish men is at a low level and contributing to a high incidence of fertility problems among Danish couples, he continued.
Jensen added: "Semen quality has, in some countries, reached a level where an increasing fraction of young men are at risk of fertility problems."
Oxford Journal of Human Reproduction 26(6):1307-1317, 2011
