SINGAPORE: Excessive heat has been shown to have negative effects on conception and birth outcomes in couples, in addition to an individual’s health and productivity at work, according to a study by the National University of Singapore (NUS).
As temperatures rise, the total fertility rate of Singaporeans—which dropped to a record-breaking less than one in 2023—may also decline. Average can be equated with rate, The Straits Times reports.
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Sperm samples from 818 males that were previously being kept in the andrology department of the National University Hospital (NUH) were examined by researchers from the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine.
Using meteorological records from 90 days prior to the men’s semen collection at NUH, the scientists were able to determine the men’s exposure to excessive heat.
The collection was defined as any day in which the average temperature is more than 29.8 degrees Celsius.
The researchers discovered that there was a forty percent rise in the risk of poor sperm concentration and a forty percent increase in the risk of low sperm count among individuals who spent the three months in intense heat.
Additionally, more sluggishness and decreased motility were also seen in the reproductive cells.
These results were especially noticeable for males between the ages of 25 and 35, who are often approaching fatherhood, according to research fellow Samuel Gunther, one of the team’s researchers, as reported by The Straits Times.
Part of Project HeatSafe, the fertility and heat research combines many studies and fieldwork conducted over a three and a half year period by NUS researchers and collaborators to examine the effects of rising temperatures on people’s health and productivity in this area, with a particular focus on outdoor workers.
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