The Different Colours of Semen and What These May Mean

Posted on September 13, 2017September 5, 2021 by Andrew Orr

Many men often believe they have healthy sperm and healthy semen just because they were born male. The fact is that these days men’s sperm is now not as good as men’s sperm was 50 years ago. Much of this is now blamed on environmental estrogens and also dietary and lifestyle factors. Let’s face it, many guys are big alcohol drinkers, they eat poorly and some of the population are also indulging in recreational drugs regularly too.

To put it honestly, many of the male populations sperm are drunk, stoned and have so many defects from the lifestyle their owner has been living. The fluid they swim in, the seminal fluid, is often contaminated and not that much better.

While many men may want to believe they could impregnate every woman in their sight, or at the local bar, many men are flat out getting the woman they are with pregnant.

As I have often said, many often look at the female as being the major factor in the reproductive and fertility journey, yet to be honest; men are more than 50% of the issues faced with fertility and up to 85% of miscarriage issues are related to chromosomal and DNA factors related to sperm. These chromosomal and DNA factors cannot be seen in a routine semen analysis either and does require specialised genetic testing.

Men’s overall health is reflected in his sperm and semen and this health is now known to be passed onto his offspring. Yes, what men eat, drink, smoke, think etc, is passed onto his offspring. That is why we say the healthier the man is, the healthier his sperm is. Healthy men produce healthy babies.

The colour of semen

Much can be seen in the quality of men’s sperm and much can also be seen by the colour of the seminal fluid that sperm are carried in. While semen is typically a whitish-gray colour, there are some instances when semen may appear as a different colour, which is commonly yellow. Sometimes producing unusual coloured semen is a once-only occurrence. Other times, a man may notice a more consistent change in the colour of his semen. Although this occurrence is not always a cause for concern, there are some instances when semen colour change can be an indicator of an underlying medical condition, or that a man’s health and lifestyle may be affecting his seminal fluid and his sperm.

Fast facts about semen and colour changes

Semen is a gel-like liquid that males emit during ejaculation or sexual release. Semen contains sperm, which can fertilize a female egg. Several glands and male reproductive organs are responsible for producing semen and transporting it for ejaculation. Dysfunction of one or more of these areas could lead to semen colour changes. Treatments for unusual coloured semen will depend upon the underlying cause.

Semen as a substance is a combination of secretions from the male reproductive glands as well as sperm. Changes and disruption to these areas are what cause colour changes.

Colour changes to semen and what is could mean:

Yellow Semen

One of the main colour changes seen in sperm is that is changes to the colour yellow.
The urethra is the tube that urine and semen pass through, so urine may mix with semen to change the colour. Although semen is usually a whitish-gray color, some men may have sperm that can change to a yellow colour. However, if yellow semen represents a significant colour change for a man, this could be cause for concern.

While semen that is light yellow is not usually a cause for concern, there are instances when a man should see a doctor for yellow semen, especially when the semen is a dark yellow.

If a man has other symptoms, such as yellowing skin, fever and high temp, the semen that has a terrible smell, or he experiences pain when ejaculating, he should see his doctor.

Some potential causes associated with yellow semen include:

Jaundice: This results when the liver a dsyfunction of the liver, or when the liver is in overload. Jaundice can causes yellowing of the eyes and yellowing of the skin and the semen can appear yellow too.
Abnormally high white blood cells: Inflammation can produce excess white blood cells. When there is infection, or inflammation, additional white blood cells can cause semen to appear yellow.
STIs: A sexually transmitted infection may also cause yellow semen. It may also cause other symptoms and cause the semen to have a terrible smell too.
Dietary changes: Eating certain refined foods can cause yellow semen. The smell of ejaculate may also change if a man eats strong-smelling foods, or have too much alcohol, or recreational drugs.
Infrequent ejaculation: If a man has not ejaculated in some time; the semen is more likely to have mixed with urine. The quality of semen and sperm is affected by infrequent ejaculation too. Storing it up makes it worse, not better and this is why regular ejaculation is important for sperm quality.

Other semen colour changes and what they may mean

Semen can be other colours too. Some other potential colour changes a man may notice include:

Brown or red: Sometimes blood vessel may burst around the seminal vesicles. The release of blood can cause semen to take on a brown or red appearance. If the semen continues to be red after 1 to 2 days, a man should seek medical treatment.
Green-tinted: Green-tinted semen can indicate a potential infection of the prostate or surrounding tissues. A man who has green semen may need to see his doctor.

What do if your semen colour changes

It is not completely abnormal for a man to produce semen that varies in colour, texture, and even smell. This can be caused by a man’s diet, lifestyle, amount of alcohol he drinks, drugs consumed, medications he is taking, and the amount of time since he last ejaculated. Stress can also affect his sperm and semen.

If a man notices something out of the ordinary, or his semen remains discoloured for an extended period, he should contact his doctor who can diagnose the potential cause and provide peace of mind. Sometimes medications and antibiotics may be needed. In severe cases surgical intervention and hospitalisation may be needed too.

Regards

Andrew Orr

-Master of Reproductive Medicine and Women’s Health Medicine

-‘No Stone Left Unturned’

The Toxic Consequences of Sugar on Mental Health

Posted on August 6, 2017August 22, 2019 by Andrew Orr

When sugar cravings set in, the last thing we might think of is how this may affects our long-term mental health. There is now so much research to suggest that we should be thinking about the toxic consequences of sugar much more.

After a stressful day and when our moods can sometimes be low, it is all to easy to reach for sugary treats. But sugar can also be in the form of savoury things too. We need to remember that savoury things convert to sugar and may have hidden sugars as well. There is so much evidence to show the link between sugar and chromic inflammation and now the evidence around it affecting mental health and mood disorders is increasing.

Previously, I shared some new research in post about the greater risk of depression in men and women who consumed significant amounts of sugar in their diet. A few people commented that feeling depressed may lead to increased sugar consumption, rather than the other way around. However, what was really interesting about this study was that the researchers, from University College London Institute of Epidemiology and Public Health in the United Kingdom, used a mathematical model to exclude exactly that. This is known as reverse causation.

Using data from a large group of civil servants in the U.K. – they showed that sugar consumption came before depression, rather than being a consequence of it.

Diet and mental health are linked

When people ask me for help with mood disorders, I always tell them that a multimodality approach is needed, which encompasses changes to diet and lifestyle. It isn’t just about taking a pill. To be honest, there are no magic pills for mood disorders so people need to stop looking for them. True help come from changes to diet, changes to lifestyle, talk therapy, medicines and treatments that have been shown to help mood disorders.

In 2002, a study from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas showed that the overall sugar consumption per person in six different countries (Canada, France, Germany, Korea, New Zealand, and the United States) implicated sugar as a factor in higher rates of major depression.

There have been many other research teams that have investigated the effect of diet on mental health. For example, consumption of processed food, take-away foods and fast food – including hamburgers, pizza, and fried foods – was found to be higher in both children, teenagers and adults with increased rates of depression.

A study of Chinese adults, who traditionally drink unsweetened tea , also showed that those who drank soft drinks and other sweetened drinks had higher rates of depression.

The science of sugar

Sugars are simple carbohydrate molecules. While being essential for cell and organ functioning, our bodies have sophisticated machinery to break complex carbohydrate molecules into simple sugars. Sugars therefore do not need to be added to the diet and our bodies do not need added sugar to function properly. Refined carbohydrates (bread, cereals, pastas, sweet drinks etc) all convert to sugar very quickly. This makes the blood sugars spike and causes the body to store fats and also stop the burning of fats. It also causes inflammation in the body, which is the cause of many disease states and health issues that we all face.

What is really important understand is that our bodies do not differentiate between sugars from different sources. Whether it comes from white sugar, honey, molasses, corn syrup, concentrated grape extract, fruit, or milk, our bodies use the sugar in exactly the same way. Sugar is sugar, not matter what sources it comes from. We can try and sugar coat it (pardon the pun) and dress it up to look healthy, but at the end of the day, it is not healthy for us and is causing major issues with our health, both physically and mentally.

The daily recommended intake of sugar is roughly about 6 teaspoons of sugar for women and 9 teaspoons for men. Even that is probably way too much. To put that into context, a can of Coca-Cola contains up to 10 teaspoons of sugar, while a small banana contains about 3 teaspoons. When people add up what they have in a day, they might be very surprised. Add in some bread, some pasta, some dried fruits, some juice, some sugar in your tea and coffee and it all starts to add up exponentially. We really do consume a lot of sugar.

Sugar affects on the nerves and brain

Neurons are very sensitive cells and are not well prepared for sugar level spikes. In fact, individuals with diabetes are at risk of neuron and nerve damage, and scientists now understand how high blood sugar causes this.

Researchers from Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan, China, performed studies on diabetic rats and showed that high blood glucose led to chronic inflammation and neuronal damage and death in the brain. Importantly, there is a strong link between diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease, further supporting the claim that sugar toxicity has a role in brain health.

How to cut down your sugar intake

Cutting sugar from our diet may be easier said than done and these we are bombarded with advertisements for convenience foods and tasty treats. But even seemingly healthful foods can have high levels of hidden sugars. This is where many people get caught out. Food such as breakfast cereals, sauces (including ketchup and pasta sauce), dried fruits, gluten free products, flavoured milks, wholemeal bread, and many products labelled as low fat, such as fruit yogurts, low fat milk etc.

The other food that often get overlooked are fruit juices and so called healthy smoothies. A study published in the British Medical Journal last year showed that over 40% of the smoothies and fruit juices for children contained at least 19 grams of sugar. That is a lot of sugar for an to ingest, let alone a child. High levels of sugars are also in many toddler and baby foods too.

The best way to keep tabs on sugar consumption is to become familiar with nutritional labels. While some products may claim that they have no added sugars, the nutrition facts panel will show the amount of carbohydrates and sugars in the product. It is really important to read these panels because some of what you are ingesting may shock you. Just beware of clever marketing and advertising.

It is so important that we all start to look at foods and start to choose foods that are low in refined ingredients, such as sugar and other additive, but high in protein, omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, amino acids and other nutrients that can relieve the symptoms of depression. Scientists are now seeing that these foods are promoting good brain health, which is great to see.

The next time stress and low mood threatens to spoil your day, remember that good foods can help you and remember where that sugar can actually make your moods worse.

Let’s not forget that trying to withdraw off sugar can be harder than coming off some hard core drugs. Sugar is highly addictive and does have drug like effects on the body. Don’t believe me?

Try it sometime and see how hard it is.

Take care

Regards

Andrew Orr

-Women’s and Men’s Health Advocate

-“No Stone Left Unturned”

Coffee Intake Can Make You Live Longer

Posted on July 19, 2017August 22, 2019 by Andrew Orr

Coffee is usually the first thing to go when people go on a health kick, as many think that coffee is bad for you. Quite the contrary and recent research has actually shown that coffee has many health benefits and can prevent and reduce many cancers and disease states.

It is always amusing to see people ditch the coffee and still keep the alcohol, which can be very bad for ones health. After all coffee actually does have a substantial amount of vitamins, nutrients, amino acids and bioactive compounds.

It has to be good bean coffee, not the instant variety, which is full of colours, artificial flavours and additives. Real coffee please. Not fake instant coffee.

In new research from two very large studies coffee intake has been shown to significantly lower risk for certain cancers, cardiovascular disease, strokes and some digestive cancers that affect people world wide.

The benefit was found in diverse European populations, as well as across different racial/ethnic groups, researchers report in articles published online in Annals of Internal Medicine.

In the study of over 451,000, from ten different countries world wide, men and women who drank coffee lived up to 12% longer than non-coffee drinkers. The study also showed that there was a significant reduction in death (59%) from digestive disease, circulatory disease and cerebrovascular disease.

The study showed that those who drank good coffee ( bean coffee, not instant) lower risk for all-cause death and death from heart disease, cancer, respiratory disease, stroke, diabetes, and kidney disease.

Obviously coffee intake does need to be in moderation (1-3 cups per day), especially those with adrenal issues and it needs to be incorporated into a healthy diet along with lifestyle changes. You can’t have a bad diet and lifestyle and expect to drink coffee to make you live longer.

So before you ditch the coffee in favour of other vices like alcohol on your next health kick, maybe you might need to rethink your choices.

It is time for a coffee yet?

Regards

Andrew Orr

-Women’s and Men’s Health Crusader

-“No Stone Left Unturned”

Why Sperm Is The 51st Shade of Grey

Posted on June 25, 2017August 22, 2019 by Andrew Orr

Sperm is something that is very little talked about and why sperm is the 51st shade of grey. Men always think they are born with super sperm, when in fact it is the complete opposite now. Many fertility clinics are letting men use substandard sperm and are not holding men accountable for their sperm health. No wonder so many couples are failing to fail pregnant.

Over the years I have put up some serious posts about sperm and sperm quality and the importance of maintaining sperm health. While my post are intended for people trying to actually have a baby, but many of those not trying for babies loved the posts as well.

It is still good to promote healthy sperm production and reproductive function, even if you aren’t trying to have a baby. Healthy lifestyle promotes health bodies, which then helps promote healthy sexual and reproductive function.

In many of my posts about sperm, I also talk about the importance of regular ejaculation to help with better quality sperm and also healthy reproductive function. These posts always raise a few eye bows, and caused a few giggles, or “There you go dear, I told you we need to have sex more often”.

However, I did see that there were some major misperceptions around the topic of sperm. So, I thought I’d better educate you all on the finer details of sperm

Biology 101 tell us that it takes a sperm and an egg, not just an egg (as many people seem to forget), to make a baby. The trouble is, over 50% of fertility issues are related to poor quality sperm and up to 85% of miscarriage issue are related to men’s defective swimmers. So what do guys do when they hear this?

Well, they bury their heads in the sand and say “My boys are fine, I just know they are” and guzzle some more alcohol, that has their swimmers having two heads, two tails and swimming around like a drunk man in a pool. Guys are shockers when it comes to keeping their sperm healthy and why I will always be in business for fertility services.

But besides the downside of men and sperm, there are some good points to sperm, but most of the time Dr Google has you all believing things that just aren’t true at all.

So lets look at the facts about Sperm.

Sperm can help fight depression in women– Research has shown that have oral sex, or unprotected sex (not that I advocate this unless in a healthy relationship), have less depression, have healthier moods and have healthy immune systems and are happier in general. Sperm helps increase oxytocin, prostaglandins and seretonin in women according the The State University of New York study.
Sperm can make you more fertile – Semen isn’t just vehicle for carrying sperm – it also plays a crucial role in triggering ovulation, according to a new study.Scientists have discovered the protein in the sexual fluid acts as a hormonal signal on the female brain.This triggers the release of other hormones that signal the ovaries to release an egg.
Sperm can help Embryo Implantation– Studies have shown that sperm actually assist in embryo implantation via several chemicals and hormones. Yet many people are told refrain for having sex after IVF. I can tell you that you need to have more sex and not listen to the BS and listen to the research that proves otherwise.
Storing up sperm does not make it better– Research has shown that regular ejaculation improves sperm quality and the resulting transport of seminal fluids. (as was told to you in previous posts). Storing it up, does not make it better, it makes it worse. Regular ejaculation also helps the prostate.
Sperm do not last for days– On ejaculation into a woman, most of the 300-500 million sperm that set off are dead within an hour and only about 5-10 single sperm actually survive the journey to the tubes, where many more half of those die off once more. Sperm are killed by acids,killed by the woman’s immune system, die in the uterus, get lost in the uterus, die on the tubes and so on. Only the fittest survive the race to pregnancy. (The human body series BBC)
You can cook with it– Yep, there are cooking books that use semen to cook recipes with. (Natural Harvest – A Collection of Semen-Based Recipes). Where semen is described as “Semen is not only nutritious, but it also has a wonderful texture and amazing cooking properties. Like fine wine and cheeses, the taste of semen is complex and dynamic” Well there you go, crack open the bottle of grange now.
Sperm is good for your skin– Sperm contains minerals such and zinc, vitamin C, prostaglandins, collagen, vitamins, amino acids and many other health things to help with skin. Bioforskning, a Norwegian company, has synthesized the compounds into a facial cream. According to Bioforskning, the cream Spermine is 30 times more effective than vitamin E and can delay the aging process by 20 percent. However, nature’s most natural facial cream can cost you a whopping $250. I’d like to see them try to market that at Myer 🙂
The first sperm under a microscope– Antonie van Leeuwenhoek was the person to view sperm under a microscope. It’s a bright day in 1677, in the city of Delft, and Antonie van Leeuwenhoek is making love to his wife. But moments after he shudders with orgasm, he hurries out of bed to grab his microscope. After all, he’s not just spending time with his wife: he’s running an important scientific experiment at the request of the Royal Society in London. Sounds like nothing much has changed for some men. Now some are just rushing to watch the footy.

Well, there you go. 8 things Wikipedia can’t tell you about sperm. The good, the bad and the down right outrageous. You heard it hear first. The doc provides you news that other people are to scared to report. I hope all of you have a great up and coming week. Pardon the pun. Life is too short to be serious, about a serious topic.

References

1.http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2190863/Semen-good-womens-health-helps-fight-depression.html

2.http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2191495/Does-having-sex-make-women-fertile-Semen-trigger-ovulation-mammals.html

3.http://humrep.oxfordjournals.org/content/15/12/2653.short?rss=1&ssource=mfr

4 & 5. World Health Organization. WHO Laboratory Manual for the Examination of Human Semen and Sperm – Cervical Mucus Interaction (4th Edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK (1999)

6. Human Body Series (BBC) – Conception

7.http://cookingwithcum.com

8. http://www.medicaldaily.com/extraordinary-things-you-can-do-sperm-242190

9.http://rstl.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/9/101-111/121.full.pdf+html

Regards

Andrew Orr

-Women’s and Men’s Health Advocate

-No Stone Left Unturned

-The International Fertility Experts

Male Exposure to Chemicals, Alcohol, Diet and Drugs, linked to Longer Time to Conceive

Posted on June 25, 2017August 22, 2019 by Andrew Orr

I was going to add some further information to the last post of how males need to be held more accountable in the fertility journey and look after their health better, but I found some research that explained some more about this subject.

There is so much more research on how a man’s diet and lifestyle and exposure to chemicals, does affect his ability to conceive and also what he passes onto his future offspring. Often issues in a man, are actually a bigger factor in not falling pregnant, yet most of the time, women are the ones under the microscope. It really just does not make sense.

It’s well known that what a woman eats, drinks, breathes and puts on her body while she’s pregnant or nursing can all affect her reproductive system and the health of her baby. But there is plenty of research to show that a man’s exposure to harmful chemicals plays an important role, too.

Research has found that the concentration of heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants, alcohol, drugs and phthalates in a man’s body had more effect on how long it took a couple to conceive than the concentrations of those chemicals in the woman.

In this study, researchers looked at data from the Longitudinal Investigation of Fertility and the Environment (LIFE) Study at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. The study explored the relationship between environmental chemicals and fertility by following 501 couples for up to a year while they tried to conceive, tracking such factors as time-to-pregnancy, miscarriages, infertility, birth size and more.

The research published in the April edition of the journal Andrology, measured the amounts of certain chemicals in the urine and blood samples of both partners. Male exposures were associated with as much as 30 percent reduction in “couple fecundity,” as measured by the amount of time it took them to conceive.

Reference: – http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/andr.12171/abstract
Things such as alcohol exposure, heavy metal exposure, cigarette smoking, recreational drug use, endocrine disruptors and dietary exposures cannot be measured in a semen analysis.

To be honest, a semen analysis is just a brief overview of what is going on for a males reproductive system. Just because a man meets the minimum parameters on a semen analysis, does not mean he has good sperm to conceive naturally, or with assisted reproduction, quite the opposite actually. Semen analysis is not what normal sperm, for natural conception parameters should be, or are based on.

Semen analysis parameters are only an evaluation for Assisted Reproduction levels only, and we know that these parameters only need to be very low to meet the requirements for IVF and ICSI.

If you meet the minim parameters of this test, it does not mean you have good sperm, or sperm good enough for natural conception. Quantitively normal semen, does not mean it is qualitatively good. Plus, you can’t measure DNA damage and other environmental damage to sperm on a semen analysis. This is why so many couples are still having failed cycles, because they are told everything is OK, when in fact it isn’t.

This is why I always treat both the female and male, because over 50% of fertility issues are related to males and 85% of miscarriage issues are related to chromosomal factors relating to the male. It takes two people to have a baby, not just the female, unless you are a single female doing it on your own, or are in a same sex relationship.

Even then, sometimes the frozen sperm has issues too and a new batch is required to bring about success.

If a man is really serious about having a baby, then he will have no issue in giving up the things that are known to affect sperm. It is all about where his priority lies. If alcohol, cigarettes, drugs etc are the priority, then it begs the question, is this the right person to be trying to conceive with.

If you aren’t having success and need some answers, you can call my friendly staff and inquire about my fertility program that has assisted over 12,500 babies into the world… and counting.

Regards
Andrew Orr
Women’s & Men’s Health Crusader”
-Leaving No Stone Left Unturned

-The International Fertility Experts

Men’s Diet, Drinking Habits and Health Affects The Health of Their Unborn Child.

Posted on June 24, 2017August 22, 2019 by Andrew Orr

Men should have a healthy diet before conceiving, because the fathers health and everything he puts in his body, is then transferred to his future offspring via DNA in his sperm.

This is something that I have always promoted at my clinic and why I always make sure I treat the males as well as the females. Biology 101 tells us that it takes a sperm and an egg to make a baby, not just an egg. This is why preconception care is so important and why men need to be healthy prior to conceiving, just as much as the females. Healthy men produce health sperm, which then goes on to help produce a healthy baby.

Just treating the female is not ethical practice for assisting a couple for fertility purpose. By just treating the female, that is just hormone regulation and is not helping the couple. Men need to be evaluated and have their health managed and any conditions treated as well.

Semen parameters can change by as much as 20% in a given month and change daily, week, monthly and yearly. Just because the sperm has been OK, weeks, months, years ago, does not mean it is OK now.

It takes up to 90 days for a sperm to fully mature and so what you have done now, like excessive drinking and eating bad foods, can affect your sperm in that 90 days later. This is often why we see poor sperm quality in semen analysis post the Christmas and New Year periods.

Faulty DNA can be passed onto the unborn child through the sperm

We also know that many miscarriage issues are related to poor quality sperm and DNA damage of sperm as well. Up to 85% of miscarriage issues can be related to faulty DNA in a man’s sperm and this can all be due to what he eats and drinks and puts into his body.

DNA damage to the sperm that cannot be measured by normal semen analysis and requires specialised testing. If the DNA is faulty then through the mode of genetic inheritance this faulty DNA is then passed onto any future child. This can lead to many future health and developmental consequences for that offspring.

Genetic inheritance is something we all need to consider and fetal origins of disease.

Endocrine Disruption

It has been well established that environmental chemicals (endocrine disrupters) are reproductive toxicants and can be associated with impaired semen quality and reproductive potential in animals and humans.

An endocrine disruptor is defined as:

“as an exogenous agent that interferes with the synthesis, secretion, transport, binding, action or elimination of natural hormones in the body that is responsible for the maintenance of homeostasis, reproduction, development and/or behavior.”

Research has shown that poor fetal nutrition to adult-onset diseases including coronary heart disease, Type 2 diabetes and metabolic dysfunction,and has formed the basis for the developmental origins of health and disease paradigm, which similarly posits a correlation between perinatal health and the eventual development of chronic diseases. Toxicologists have also identified neonatal development as a ‘critical window of exposure’, such that chemical exposures (e.g., endocrine disrupters) have been linked to adult-onset reproductive cancers and many other diseases

Taken together, these models support the extreme sensitivity of the neonatal period to environmental influences, as shown by research, the models provide an explanation for fetal origins of adult obesity risk and other disease states, including infertility.

There are treatments for DNA damage and poor quality sperm

As part of my fertility program I talk to couples about what can assist male sperm quality and assist with DNA damage to sperm. Proper medical testing and evaluation and screening is done prior to commencement of treatments and ongoing management.

At my clinic and as part of my fertility program, I always make sure the male is part of the whole process and ongoing health management, when helping couples have a baby.

Just remember, Biology 101, tells us it takes a sperm and an egg to make a baby, not just an egg. This is why it is so important for men to step up and be as healthy as they can prior to have a baby and do things that can help with their sperm quality as well.

Regards

Andrew Orr

-Women’s and Men’s Health Expert

-No Stone Left Unturned

-The International Fertility Experts