Could your semen quality reveal insights into longevity? Possibly, according to a study published March 5 in the journal Human Reproduction. 

Researchers at the Copenhagen University Hospital used a database of almost 80,000 men tracked over 50 years to see whether semen quality—including factors like sperm concentration and motility—was associated with lifespan. They found that men with healthy semen lived, on average, nearly three years longer than those with lower-quality semen.

“We found that the better the semen quality, the longer the life expectancy,” lead author Lærke Priskorn, PhD, researcher at Copenhagen University Hospital, Denmark, told Health. “This was a dose-response association which was evident for all the measures of semen quality that we had.”

Here’s how the researchers made this discovery—and whether experts recommend having your semen tested in light of the results.

Previous studies have linked infertility and poor semen quality to mortality, but that research didn’t take into account the underlying health of participants, according to the authors of the new study.

The researchers wanted to revisit the association between semen quality and longevity, filling in this missing piece. 

To do so, they studied data from 78,284 men with semen quality assessed between 1965 and 2015 as part of a fertility assessment in the Copenhagen area. A subgroup of 59,657 of those men provided semen samples after 1987 and offered information about their education level and pre-existing diseases. Over the 50-year surveillance period, 8,600 of the participants died.

Measuring semen quality involves looking under a microscope and using a computer program to take stock of the total volume, sperm concentration, and proportion of structurally healthy-looking sperm. It also means analyzing at how much of the sperm is motile, meaning that it swims in a straight line, increasing the chances of fertilizing an egg. 

Overall, the more motile sperm a man in the study had, the longer he was expected to live. The men who had the healthiest semen, with more than 120 million motile sperm, could expect to live 80.3 years. Those with the least healthy semen, with less than 5 million motile sperm, had a life expectancy of 77.6 years.

“We accounted for all diagnosed diseases registered in the National Patient Register in the 10 years before the semen quality assessment, and this did not change the results, suggesting that the association was not explained by the men being sick when having their semen quality assessed,” Priskorn said.

This relationship also held when accounting for educational status.

Michael Eisenberg, MD, a Stanford University professor who wasn’t involved with the research but has previously collaborated with some of the authors, told Health that the study was “well done” and that the findings are significant.

“When we examine why the association between semen quality and longevity exists, there are several possibilities,” Eisenberg said. “Certainly, underlying health issues are one possibility. However, even if that is a contributor, the fact that a semen analysis is associated with lifespan still provides an important data point.”

Study Limitations

There are some drawbacks to the study, however. The researchers had no information about other behaviors or lifestyle factors that could affect semen quality.

Additionally, the group of men with less than 5 million motile sperm had varied levels of testicular function, and the researchers didn’t have enough information to see how different levels may have affected overall mortality.

And the study participants—men who underwent fertility examinations—”are not representative of the general population” and are “generally healthier,” Priskorn said.

However, Roger Hart, MD, a professor at the University of Western Australia, who wasn’t involved in the research, told Health that the study’s data “will be applicable in all communities,” though he noted researchers should still replicate it in other ethnic groups.

Although semen quality and life expectancy may be linked, experts don’t support having your sperm tested outside of a fertility clinic setting.

“We are suggesting that we may be able to do better for men who have their semen quality assessed due to fertility issues,” said Priskorn. “Fertility workups, which most often occur at a young age, may provide a window of opportunity for clinicians to identify and mitigate potential health risks that may otherwise go unnoticed until they manifest with clear symptoms.”

According to Hart, routine semen screening would “generate undue and unnecessary anxiety.” Finding out that your semen quality isn’t great doesn’t necessarily mean that it would influence your longevity.

If you want to boost semen quality, the best you can do is make smart lifestyle choices. While the foundations of semen health are laid during fetal development, Priskorn said that “living healthy may ensure that your semen quality is as good as it gets.”

Lifestyle factors associated with semen quality include:

• Drinking alcohol
• Smoking
• Having excess weight or obesity
• Psychological stress
• Having an unhealthy diet

A 2022 study of 263 healthy people found that following a Mediterranean-style diet and exercise over four months could lead to small improvements in semen quality. But there isn’t a whole lot of evidence supporting the use of supplements to enhance semen quality, Hart said.