Dr. Mercola November 05 2000 3,467 views
Men who go mountain biking run a high risk of injuries to the scrotum that could affect their fertility, a new study suggests.
Austrian researchers studied 45 male mountain bikers and found that 96% had scrotal abnormalities.
The abnormalities found included:
These abnormalities were seen in only 16% of 31 men who had gone biking, but not off-road.
In addition to the abnormalities, half of the men reported that they had scrotal tenderness or discomfort.
As further investigation into this phenomenon, investigators are now getting sperm counts from the men in the study.
Biking, regardless of the terrain, has previously been linked to impotence in men, which is believed to result from the damage to blood vessels and nerves caused by the pressure from the bicycle seat. However, with mountain biking, the terrain often results in more severe effects on the scrotum.
Researchers speculate that the off-road biking damages the epididymis, which are the tightly coiled tubes folded against the back of each testis where sperm are stored and mature.
The Lancet October 21, 2000;356:1414.
Exercise is wonderful and mountain biking is enormous fun that is an incredibly powerful way to improve your cardiovascular fitness. The guys do need to be concerned about over doing it though, especially if they are interested in having kids. Frequent rests are the key to minimizing the problem and should be followed regularly along with wearing one's helmet.
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I am concerned about my brother. He has been a long time biker without all the proper protection. He at least had a big comfortable gel seat at a comfortable height, as oppose to a hard narrow racing seat. But is there anyway to reverse the damages that has been done?