Mountain dew kills sperm cells

A shocking bit of misinformation has captured the hearts and minds of high school and college students of late — the notion that the popular caffeinated soft drink Mountain Dew can be used as a contraceptive. If Internet chatter is any indication, it is widely believed among people that drinking Mountain Dew "kills sperm cells" or, at minimum, drastically lowers a male's sperm count. There are some who fear it may cause impotency, while others seem to view it as a cheap and easy method of birth control. He likens it people believing Elvis is still alive and claiming to have bumped into him in a convenience store — i. True believers attribute the soft drink's purported sperm-killing properties to its relatively high caffeine content 55 mg.

Sperm is a reproductive cell found in semen, a fluid that males produce and release during sexual relations. Sperm cells play a vital role in pregnancy. Some men experience infertility because of a low sperm count. Motility, however, slows down when a male consumes too much caffeine, typically after four cups of coffee a day. A ounce can of Mountain Dew contains 54 milligrams mg of caffeine, which is more than other sodas Coke has 34 mg per 12 ounces and Pepsi has 38 mg. But given how a cup of coffee has about mg of caffeine per 12 ounces, and you would have to drink 4 cups to cause a decrease in sperm motility, it becomes easier to understand how little Mountain Dew affects sperm.

Tight briefs, red meat, varicose veins or stress? Which has been shown to actually reduce a man's sperm count and lead to infertility? Low sperm count is an uncomfortable subject for some men to discuss, which may be why so many urban legends have sprung up about its causes.

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