36-year-old Shipra Singh was ridiculed by her in laws for her inability to conceive a child. They took her to multiple Ayurveda centers but nothing helped. A visit to the gynecologist and a couple of tests later, she got the rude shock that the real reason behind her failed attempts to conceive was actually her husband.Infertility is most often seen as a woman's issue and it is them who bear the brunt of not bearing a child. But according to a recent report by WHO on the status of infertility in India, of all infertility cases, approximately 50% is due to “male factor” infertility, owing to the reproductive anomalies in the male.Doctors of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) have reported that over 12–18 million couples in India are diagnosed with infertility every year. They have reported that while the sperm count of a normal Indian adult male used to be 60 million/ml three decades ago, it now stands at around 20 million/ml.Dr Jyoti Bali, Infertility Specialist, Medical Director, Baby Soon Fertility & IVF Centre shares, "We have observed that male infertility factor is the primary reason for inability to conceive specially between the age group of 29 to 35. They either have a combination of low sperm concentration or poor sperm motility, or abnormal morphology. However, due to social stigma, male fertility problems are considered secondary and most often go undiagnosed and untreated."There are number of factors responsible for the dip in male infertility. Unhealthy lifestyle, lack of physical activity, high pressure jobs, pollution, poor diet, alcohol consumption and smoking are the culprits for increased rate of infertility in men. Tobacco use affects spermatogenesis and has been linked with low sperm count. Smoking, alcohol, unhealthy lifestyle have unfavourable effects on male semen parameters.Dr Bali added, "There are a few signs and symptoms related to male infertility that includes difficulty with ejaculation, volumes of ejaculated fluid being very less, erectile dysfunction and no or very less sexual desire. Men with infertility problems may also have recurrent respiratory infections, inability to smell or minimal growth of hair on body and face. According to semen analysis parameter they have fewer than 15 million sperm per millilitre of semen or a total sperm count of less than 39 million per ejaculate."However with advancement of medical science there are assisted reproduction techniques, such as Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) and IMSI (Intracytoplasmic morphologically-selected sperm injection) that can help men with poor sperm count to father a baby.Not all types of male infertility are preventable. However, some common conditions of infertility can be controlled by following a few preventable measures such as smoking, alcohol, illicit drugs abstain, weight management, therapy for Stress Reduction, avoiding exposure to toxins, pesticides and heavy metals and anything that leads to prolonged heat for the testicles.