So why say this then...?

[yenrod]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8124458.stm


'He added that 40 years ago cycling was much more common but there is no evidence men then were less fertile.'

 

[gbb]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8124458.stm


'He added that 40 years ago cycling was much more common but there is no evidence men then were less fertile.'

Talking to my dad some time ago...he remembers in the 50s i think, you'd regularly see 50 + guys out on a club run. Cycling was remarkably popular. Clubs abounded.

But....at what level were these guys cycling. Not elite of course. They were probably the same as 90% of us today, pleasure, leisure, fitness and social cyclists...only there were far more of them.

90%(just a figure) of cyclists then didnt suffer infertility problems.....90% of cyclists now won't suffer infertility problems.

 

[ComedyPilot]

What a load of bollicks

 

[gbb]

Articles like this make me wonder...just how intelligent are some people, or how desperate are some people to make a story out of nothing !!

Took me, i assume you Yenrod and CP too, 2 minutes to work out the pointlessness of that line.....

 

[yenrod]

Articles like this make me wonder...just how intelligent are some people, or how desperate are some people to make a story out of nothing !!

Took me, i assume you Yenrod and CP too, 2 minutes to work out the pointlessness of that line.....

Yes GBB - it brought up more questions than answers - probably the the scientist or whomever is a hardened cardriver! AND never rides a bike.

Whenever I see someone on a bike I think thats brilliant whereas if I see a cardriver i think 'what a dis-jointed individual !

 

[Arch]

Well, I assume that line is an attempt to persuade people to think beyond their initial "oh! cycling makes you infertile!" reaction to the story, because that's what a lot of people will think it all means. Which is daft, but I think we're all well aware how many daft people there are out there looking for an excuse not to get off their fat arses.

 

[mangaman]

A tiny study in Spain (of 15 people) found a small drop in sperm quality after elite cycling.

The BBC write a sensationalised article saying elite male cyclists should get their sperm frozen based on this one study

A British scientist is asked to comment and clearly takes the bigger picture - "Dr Allan Pacey, senior lecturer in andrology at the University of Sheffield, said there had been a lot of interest in cycling and male fertility but results had been mixed."

Meaning this particular Spanish study should be taken with a pinch of salt and there is no evidence for a relationship between male fertility and elite cycling.

He (ie Dr Pacey) added that 40 years ago cycling was much more common but there is no evidence men then were less fertile

So in summary - non-story, but typical of science reporting.

If Simoncc was here, he'd be hopping mad that his licence fee had paid for this article.

 

[Lazy-Commuter]

The story was linked to in Commuting as well, albeit from a different media source. Same study, same sensationalist reporting, different outlet ..

As mangaman says it's such a small sample size that it's not really worth bothering with. And, of course ..

Well, I assume that line is an attempt to persuade people to think beyond their initial "oh! cycling makes you infertile!" reaction to the story, because that's what a lot of people will think it all means. Which is daft, but I think we're all well aware how many daft people there are out there looking for an excuse not to get off their fat arses.

.. being overweight is hardly good for your sperm count and function!!

[Hoping that there are studies to back that up and I'm not just quoting some vaguely remembered urban myth but not actually being bothered to go and check]

 

[Arch]

The story was linked to in Commuting as well, albeit from a different media source. Same study, same sensationalist reporting, different outlet ..

As mangaman says it's such a small sample size that it's not really worth bothering with. And, of course ..

.. being overweight is hardly good for your sperm count and function!!

[Hoping that there are studies to back that up and I'm not just quoting some vaguely remembered urban myth but not actually being bothered to go and check]

I think you're right, and in another thread about this I think I pondered the relative effect of training as against the stress and obesity made likely by, say, commuting by car....

 

[Lazy-Commuter]

Right enough, Arch. It's that age old problem of comparing risks: the old example being, "I couldn't cycle to work, cycling is too dangerous". What? Compared to the reduced risk of health problems that come with the greater fitness that cycling confers?

 

[Arch]

Right enough, Arch. It's that age old problem of comparing risks: the old example being, "I couldn't cycle to work, cycling is too dangerous". What? Compared to the reduced risk of health problems that come with the greater fitness that cycling confers?

Yeah, the trouble is, the benefit is in years to come (increased health and life expectancy) and the dangers are now, and the average Brit is incapable of looking beyond the middle of next week...