In the journey to parenthood, both men and women play equally vital roles. However, much of the focus tends to be on female fertility, often overlooking the importance of male fertility & sperm health. Factors like age, health conditions, and biological changes can also impact sperm quality over time. Thankfully, sperm banking offers a proactive way to safeguard fertility, ensuring future family plans stay on track.
Sperm banking offers an incredible solution for men wanting to preserve their fertility for the future so that they can plan for parenthood on their terms.
Let’s read about it in more detail below.
How Is The Sample Collected For Sperm Banking?
The process of sperm banking starts with a simple blood test where the clinician screens you for some Sexually Transmitted Infections. Next, you are sent to a room with a sterile screw-cap jar to collect your semen. This is usually a private room for you to self-collect your sample without using saliva, lubricants, etc.
For those of you who find the thought of a self-sample collection at the clinic a bit uncomfortable, you can always opt for at-home sperm banking kits. And an ideal choice could be LifeCell’s SpermVault. SpermVault is India’s first and most trusted private sperm bank that lets you self-collect your sample at home and have it shipped by their delivery partners to their labs. SpermVault kit saves you the trouble and awkwardness of a clinic visit and the bank provides you with flexible long-term sperm freezing plans.
LifeCell also runs comprehensive tests on your semen sample to check for 11 sperm health parameters and 14 conditions before sending it off for cryopreservation. Cryopreservation is the freezing of sperm at ultra-low temperatures i.e. -196 degrees Celsius in liquid nitrogen.
This cryopreserved sperm sample can be stored for up to a decade and retrieved when you plan to start your family.
Who Should Consider Sperm Banking?
Sperm banking is an invaluable option for individuals looking to safeguard their fertility for the future. It’s especially beneficial for men:
- Who Wish To Dealy Fatherhood
Sperm quality in men declines as they age. But freezing the sperm in its prime can help men have a baby in future without worrying about losing their fertility.
- With Low Sperm Count
Men with low sperm count who bank their sperm can get their partners pregnant via IVF (In Vitro Fertilisation) processes such as Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection.
- With Certain Cancers
Men with certain cancers like testicular cancer have a high risk of losing their fertility which can be avoided by banking their sperm before time.
- Undergoing Treatments Like Chemotherapy
Cancer treatments like chemotherapy and radiation can cause fertility loss in men. This can again be avoided by banking the sperm before the treatment starts.
- In Certain Professions
It’s wise for men who are frequent travellers to bank their sperm so that their partners can retrieve the sperm (and use it for artificial insemination) during their fertile window even when their partners are away. It’s also a good option for men in certain high-risk jobs (like the military) as they have a high risk of injuries that can mess up their fertility.
- Undergoing Vasectomy
If you think you might change your mind about having kids in the future after undergoing vasectomy (a permanent form of surgical male contraception), you can go for sperm banking. This will let you have biological kids even afterwards.
Final Thoughts
Sperm banking is like a saviour for all men wishing to preserve their fatherhood, be it for medical reasons or personal choices. It empowers them with greater control over their family planning, ensuring they can make decisions on their own terms.
