It may be difficult to navigate the seas of infertility at times. Getting pregnant comes with a slew of challenges that have nothing to do with your willpower or capacity to manage the outside world.
Conception comes naturally to some women, but it’s anything but for others, who have to put in more effort and keep track of more details than they could have ever imagined.
What happens, therefore, when you add the flu to the mix? When pregnant, how does having the Fever effect your chances? Is it having any impact at all, or is it just an illusion?
Yes, the flu may damage your ability to get pregnant, but not in the manner you would assume. That’s the short and nasty truth.
A high temperature may make conception more difficult while you are sick, but it is absolutely safe to continue having intercourse and attempting to become pregnant (apart from the fact that you may transmit the flu on to your partner).
You’ll also need to keep in mind that your temperature might have an impact on fertility monitoring. My basal body temperature (the lowest temperature in a 24-hour period that fluctuates while you’re ovulating) became an important part of my conceiving process.
To accurately monitor your ovulation, basal temperature measurements are unreliable when you have a fever, according to The Stork (a women’s health business that assists parents who want to have children naturally). You should also keep in mind that a male’s fertility might be damaged by the illness.
For them, a long-term fever might have a negative impact on fertility. Sperm production may be temporarily impaired for up to six months by a fever of 102 degrees Fahrenheit or higher over a period of three days (or longer). As a result, if your spouse has been sick for a lengthy period of time, you may have to wait longer than expected before conceiving.
The sperm cycle and a fever
Many of us are already aware that there are many factors, such as heat, that can affect sperm counts. So what happens when it’s the day of the IUI and the male partner has a fever? The short answer is … nothing. At least not immediately anyway. The truth is that a fever today will likely not affect the sperm for an IUI now. However, it may cause problems in the future sperm cycle
The sperm cycle
To understand this, it’s important to understand the sperm cycle. Sperm production begins in the testicles where sperm are created and allowed to mature. In order to produce and nurture sperm, the temperature of the testicles must remain approximately one degree lower than that of the rest of the body. To accommodate fluctuations in temperature, both internally and externally, the scrotum is able to move the testicles to maintain this delicate balance. In warm temperatures, the testicles can be held further away from the body. In cold temperatures, the testicles will be brought closer. If however, the testicles are not able to maintain this ideal temperature, as can occur during a fever, sperm production is hindered or may even cease for a short time.
It takes roughly 72 days for a sperm to mature enough for use. So, the sperm that are available for insemination today were actually produced about three months ago. But, the fever that he has today may affect the growing sperm in his testicles three months from now. Fever has been associated with decreased sperm counts, motility, and morphology. If fever is present, please notify your physician so a note can be made in your chart.
Temperature is Critical
Sperm are produced by a man’s testicles (commonly called balls). There’s a reason that the testicles are outside a man’s body cavity. The testicles need to be four degrees cooler than body temperature to make plenty of healthy sperm. The cremaster muscle contracts to pull the testicles closer to the body if they start to get too cold, and it relaxes to push them farther from the body to cool off if they get too warm. Prolonged exposure to a warmer temperature will make sperm die. This will show up in a semen analysis as reduced motility (movement).
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Does having a fever affect sperm?
Their semen parameters were influenced by the length of time they had been sick with a fever. Fevers diminish sperm concentration by 7.1% (-12.9%; -0.9%) and 8.5% (-13.6%) each day during meiosis and spermiogenesis, respectively.
How long is sperm affected by fever?
In other words, sperm concentration was impacted up to 56 days after a fever episode, but sperm motility and sperm morphology appeared only to be impaired up to 32 days following a febrile episode. Some men saw an increase in the concentration of the male reproductive hormone sperm after an episode of fever, whereas others didn’t.
Can I conceive while having fever?
Flu and conception aren’t as bad as you would think they are unless you or your spouse have a particularly high fever, and even then it’s possible to conceive. It’s not a bad idea to try, even if you’re feeling under the weather and your immune system is compromised.
