Infertility Has a Male Problem

E and J underwent fertility investigations and treatment focused on E, including hormone panels, a miscarriage, and two egg retrievals. A genetic issue with J’s sperm was later discovered through J’s brother’s fertility journey, prompting doctors to shift attention to J. E had carried blame for a long time, while J had been transparent once he knew, leaving both struggling to communicate about resentment and confusion. Fertility treatment has improved and public conversation has expanded, but infertility remains widely framed as a woman’s issue, influencing who gets tested first and who is assumed to be “wrong.” Male sperm aging is often treated as an afterthought despite evidence of declining quality beginning in the mid-30s and accelerating after 40, with links to conception time, miscarriage risk, and offspring neurodevelopmental risks.

"For many months, the two of them had moved through fertility investigations and treatment. Hormone panels. A miscarriage. Two egg retrievals. All of it focused on E. Until J's brother, going through his own fertility journey, discovered a genetic issue with his sperm. J brought it to the doctors immediately. And only then did the attention turn to him. What E had been carrying, for the longest time, wasn't actually hers to carry. She had shouldered the blame, even though J hadn't openly blamed her."

"Much has changed in terms of fertility treatment. Research has expanded, treatments have improved, and public conversation has opened up in ways it never used to. But something remains essentially stuck. Infertility is still widely treated as a woman's issue. You see it in who walks into the clinic first, who gets tested first, and in who initially carries the weight of something "being wrong." It is often an automatic assumption, fueled by the commonplace idea of the biological clock that's racing against time."

"It's interesting to me that male sperm aging is still treated as an afterthought, though the data has been there for a while. Sperm quality begins to decline in the mid-30s and accelerates after 40 (Harris et al., 2011; Xie et al., 2025). Volume drops, motility slows, and DNA fragmentation rises. Advanced paternal age has also been linked to longer time to conception, higher miscarriage risk, and elevated risk of certain neurodevelopmental conditions in offspring, including autism and sch"

Read at Psychology Today