The main difference between males and females is the ability of the fairer sex to remain fertile for a much longer life span and the greater potency of the eggs they produce. Women maintain the production of eggs till menopause and are assured of enough supply till they reach menopause. Males on the other hand start producing semen only on puberty and can start encountering problems with their sperm at any stage during their active sexual life due to a variety of reasons. The result is a low sperm count and other issues with them.

Inconsistent production of sperm means that he is not in a position to make his partner conceive. Besides the quantity of the sperm produced, other aspects like the sperm mobility, morphology; density and sub fertility all play very important roles in enabling conception within the female partner. A problem with any one of these aspects may make it difficult for women to conceive. Sperm mobility alludes to the ability of the sperm in a particular direction at a specific speed. Unless the sperm can make their way into the cervix and through the cervix into the uterus to fertilize the egg, conception will not take place.

The next aspect is the density of the sperm cells in specific quantities of semen. The normal density is about 22 million sperm cells in a milliliter of semen and this density is very crucial to ensure that enough sperm cells travel towards their goal of impregnating the egg. Sperm morphology refers to the shape of the sperm cell which needs to be in the shape of a tadpole for effective movement and function. Oddly shaped sperm cells are found to be incapable of proper and therefore cannot fertilize the egg.

Similarly the sperm cells must possess the appropriate speed in order to travel successfully through the cervical canal, enter the uterus and impregnate the egg. It has been found that only 25% of the sperm cells have the capability and required momentum to perform this function and that is where the quantity of sperm cells plays a major role.

A high sperm count can only be ensured if the ejaculate is copious. While there are more than 50 million sperm present in a typical ejaculate, a drop to below 40 million can lead to infertility problems. However it must be mentioned here that a normal ejaculate with the usual quantity of sperm cells always does not ensure conception. Couples do face sub-fertility problems when the woman is unable to conceive despite engaging in unprotected sex over a period of more than a year. This indicates that the male may have issues starting with low sperm count to a probable blockage within the delivery system of the sperm. Other factors needing investigation in case of male sub-fertility include any injury to the testicles or any after effects of medication that he has been imbibing.

People often advocate abstinence from sexual intercourse for a period of time and also to refrain from masturbation as measures to increase sperm count. While this may seem logical given the fact that abstinence leads to a better quantity of ejaculate and thereby more sperm cells, recent studies have shown that it is better to have frequent ejaculations. The more time the sperm spend within the tubes prior to ejaculation, the less potent they are likely to be given the fact that they are exposed to a lot of free radicals floating in the body and these can cause severe damage to the sperm.

Low sperm count can be addressed not only through frequent ejaculations but also through some male fertility herbal supplements. These supplements not only increase the quantity of the ejaculate and thereby the sperm count but also aid in maintaining harder erections for a longer period of time, leading to a more satisfactory sex life.