To What Extent Are Free Testosterone (FT) Values Reproducible….

Testosterone- Free T or not Free T

Measurement of Free Testosterone in Normal Women and Women with Androgen Deficiency- Comparison of Methods

Measurment of Testosterone in the Diagnosis of Hypogonadism in the Aging Male

Calculation of Bioavailable and Free Testosterone in Men, A Comparison of Five Published Algorithms

A Critical Evaluation of Simple Methods for the Estimation of Free Testosterone in Serum

There have been many studies done that show how the following nutrients may help boost male fertility:

Fatty Acids- Fatty acids boost sperms ability to penetrate the egg. According to the Journal of Reproduction and Fertility, low levels of fatty acids are linked with sperm abnormalities.
Where you can find it- Nuts, oily fish, seeds

Vitamin B12- According to Men’s Health Magazine, Japanese research from the Yamaguchi University School of Medicine found 42% of men taking a 1500 mg daily supplement showed improvement in sperm count and motility.
Where you can find it- Eggs, liver, natural yogurt, salmon

Vitamin C- A study at the University of Texas found that vitamin C helps prevent sperm from clumping together and decreases abnormalities. Get your RDA of 1000mg from a diet rich in fruit and vegetables.
Where you can find it- Asparagus, broccoli, oranges, raspberries, strawberries

Vitamin E- Researchers from Tel Aviv University found that men who upped their intake of vitamin E by 200 mg a day saw conception rates rise
Where you can find it- Avocado, muesli, porridge, sweet potato

Zinc- A minimum daily intake of 15mg of zinc is necessary not only to boost sperm count, but to increase its swimming stamina as well.
Where you can find it- Eggs, pumpkin and sesame seeds, red meat

Anti-Müllerian Hormone (AMH) is a hormone blood test that has become increasingly popular among physicians in the field of reproductive medicine over the past several years. The primary use of AMH testing is to assess a woman’s ovarian reserve status or, in more basic terms, it is an approximation of the supply of eggs a woman has remaining.  This is one of several key factors used to help diagnose and treat women experiencing infertility issues. Benefits of AMH testing include: a more direct measurement of ovarian reserve since AMH is produced by developing eggs whereas other tests measure hormones produced by the brain, can be done with blood drawn on any day of the menstrual cycle, and results are not significantly affected by oral contraceptive therapy so patients on oral contraceptives do not have to go off of them.

Another key factor in assessing a woman’s reproductive health is her age. It has been established that a woman has a finite number of eggs and as she ages the quantity and quality of the eggs decreases. Physicians typically use their clinical experience to adjust for the age factor. At Unilab we did not feel it was sufficient to just report a result with normal and abnormal ranges that applied to all women regardless of age. Therefore, we conducted a study using AMH results from over 2000 infertility patients to develop age-specific mean values that physicians and patients can use to more accurately assess ovarian reserve. For example, a 30 year old may have an AMH of 1.5 which is considered normal, but it should be noted that for this age it is considered low. Conversely, there may be a 40 year old who has an AMH of 1.0 which is considered borderline between normal and low. But, take into consideration her age and this is actually considered on the high end. The main purpose of including age-specific AMH results is to provide physicians and patients with more individualized results for a more individualized diagnosis and treatment.

Abstract Presented at the annual American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) Meeting (October 23-27, 2010), Denver, CO.

Poster 503: Presented on October 27, 2010           

Click here for the entire poster in PDF format