# Virility

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Virility
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Virility.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virility
> Source revision: 1344775280
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

{{Short description|Traits of masculinity viewed in a positive light}}
{{for|the pathogenicity term|Virulence}}
{{Wiktionary|virility}}
[[File:Jupiter Smyrna Louvre Ma13.jpg|200px|thumb|Historically, masculine attributes such as beard growth have been seen as signs of virility and leadership (for example, in [ancient Egypt](/source/ancient_Egypt) and [Greece](/source/Greece)).<ref name="harvnb">{{harvnb|Schiebinger|1993}}</ref>]]

'''Virility''' (from the Latin ''virilitas'', manhood or virility, derived from Latin ''vir'', man) refers to any of a wide range of [masculine](/source/masculinity) characteristics viewed positively.  Virile means "marked by strength or force".<ref>''[Oxford English Dictionary](/source/Oxford_English_Dictionary)''</ref> Virility is commonly associated with vigour, [health](/source/health), sturdiness, and [constitution](/source/wiktionary%3Aconstitution), especially in the fathering of children. ''Virile'' has become obsolete in referring to a "nubile" young woman, or "a maid that is Marriageable or ripe for a Husband, or Virill".<ref>''[Oxford English Dictionary](/source/Oxford_English_Dictionary)''</ref>

Historically, masculine attributes such as [beard](/source/beard) growth have been seen as signs of virility and leadership (for example in [ancient Egypt](/source/ancient_Egypt) and [Greece](/source/Greece)).<ref name="harvnb"/>

==Male virility==
{{See also|Paternal age effect}}
Evidence shows that increased male age is associated with a decline in semen volume, [sperm motility](/source/sperm_motility), and sperm morphology.<ref name=Kidd>{{cite journal |author=Kidd, S. A., Eskenazi, B., Wyrobek, A. J. |title=Effects of male age on semen quality and fertility: a review of the literature |journal=Fertil. Steril. |volume=75 |issue=2 |pages=237–48 |date=February 2001 |pmid=11172821 |doi= 10.1016/S0015-0282(00)01679-4|doi-access=free }}</ref>  In studies that controlled for female age, comparisons between men under 30 and men over 50 found relative decreases in [pregnancy rate](/source/pregnancy_rate)s between 23% and 38%.<ref name=Kidd/>

Older men have lower semen parameters resulting in lower fertility potential. The effects of aging on semen quality are summarized below based on a study of 1,219 subjects:<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Kumar, M.D. |first1=Naina |last2=Singh, M.D. |first2=Amit |last3=Choudhari, M.D. |first3=Ajay R |date=August 2017 |title=Impact of age on semen parameters in male partners of infertile couples in a rural tertiary care center of central India: A cross-sectional study |url=https://vb.health/journal/semen-analysis-laboratory-testing-procedures/ |journal=International Journal of Reproductive Biomedicine |volume=15 |issue=8|pages=497–502 |pmid=29082368 |pmc=5653911 }}</ref>
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! Age group (years)
! Number of subjects (''n'')
! Volume (ml)
[min–max]
! Total Sperm count (million)
[min–max]
! Motility (grades a + b) (%)
[min–max]
! Morphology (%)
[min–max]
|-
| 21–28
| 57
| 2.9±1.3
[1.0–6.0]
| 144.3±138.0
[0.2–414]
| 47.5±25.4
[0–88]
| 26.1±13.3
[0–49]
|-
| 29–35
| 450
| 2.7±1.5
[0.2–8.0]
| 149.5±173.7
[0.1–1358]
| 48.1±30.4
[0–95]
| 24.8±15.7
[0–55]
|-
| 36–42
| 532
| 2.5±1.5 
[0.4–10.5]
| 120.4±156.7
[0.2–949]
| 40.0±27.1
[0–83]
| 23.1±15.9
[0–56]
|-
| 43–49
| 165
| 2.4±1.4
[0.1–8.0]
| 112.3±142.7
[0.2–776]
| 33.1±25.1
[0–84]
| 23.0±16.5
[0–60]
|-
| 50–60
| 15
| 1.7±1.1
[0.5–4.5]
| 61.0±91.1
[0.1–329]
| 31.3±23.9
[0–59]
| 19.7±14.5
[0–37]
|}
[Sperm count](/source/Sperm_count) declines with age, with men aged 50–80 years producing sperm at an average rate of 75% compared with men aged 20–50 years. However, an even larger difference is seen in how many of the [seminiferous tubules](/source/seminiferous_tubules) in the [testes](/source/testes) contain mature sperm:

*In males 20–39 years old, 90% of the seminiferous tubules contain mature sperm.
*In males 40–69 years old, 50% of the seminiferous tubules contain mature sperm.
*In males 80 years old and older, 10% of the seminiferous tubules contain mature sperm.<ref name=semin>"
[https://www.infertile.com/inthenew/sci/maleage.htm Effect of Age on Male Fertility]" ''Seminars in Reproductive Endocrinology''. Volume, Number 3, August 1991. Sherman J. Silber, M.D.</ref>

Research shows increased risks for health problems for children of older fathers. A large-scale [Israel](/source/Israel)i study found that the children of men who were 40 or older were 5.75 times more likely than children of men under 30 to have an [autism spectrum disorder](/source/Autism), controlling for year of birth, socioeconomic status, and maternal age.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Reichenberg, A. |title=Advancing paternal age and autism |journal=Arch. Gen. Psychiatry |volume=63 |issue=9 |pages=1026–32 |date=September 2006 |pmid=16953005 |doi=10.1001/archpsyc.63.9.1026 |url=http://archpsyc.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/63/9/1026 |name-list-style=vanc|author2=Gross R. |author3=Weiser M. |display-authors=3 |last4=Bresnahan |first4=M. |last5=Silverman |first5=J. |last6=Harlap |first6=S. |last7=Rabinowitz |first7=J. |last8=Shulman |first8=C. |last9=Malaspina |first9=D|doi-access= |url-access=subscription }}</ref> [Increased paternal age](/source/Paternal_age_effect) has also been correlated to schizophrenia in numerous studies.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Malaspina, D. |title=Advancing paternal age and the risk of schizophrenia |journal=Arch. Gen. Psychiatry |volume=58 |issue=4 |pages=361–7 |date=April 2001 |pmid=11296097 |doi= 10.1001/archpsyc.58.4.361|url=http://archpsyc.ama-assn.org/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=11296097 |author2=Harlap S. |author3=Fennig S. |display-authors=3 |last4=Heiman |first4=D. |last5=Nahon |first5=D. |last6=Feldman |first6=D. |last7=Susser |first7=E. S.|doi-access=free |url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Sipos A |title=Paternal age and schizophrenia: a population based cohort study |journal=BMJ |volume=329 |issue=7474 |pages=1070 |date=November 2004 |pmid=15501901 |pmc=526116 |doi=10.1136/bmj.38243.672396.55 |name-list-style=vanc|author2=Rasmussen F |author3=Harrison G |display-authors=3 |last4=Tynelius |first4=P |last5=Lewis |first5=G |last6=Leon |first6=DA |last7=Gunnell |first7=D}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Malaspina D |title=Paternal Age and Sporadic Schizophrenia: Evidence for De Novo Mutations 
|journal=Am. J. Med. Genet. |volume=114 |issue=3 |pages=299–303 |date=April 2002 |pmid=11920852|doi=10.1002/ajmg.1701 |name-list-style=vanc|author2=Corcoran C |author3=Fahim C. |display-authors=3 |last4=Berman |first4=Ariela |last5=Harkavy-Friedman |first5=Jill |last6=Yale |first6=Scott |last7=Goetz |first7=Deborah |last8=Goetz |first8=Raymond |last9=Harlap |first9=Susan |pmc=2982144}}</ref>

Researchers have found evidence to suggest overweight and obesity may cause subtle damage to sperm and prevent healthy pregnancy. They say fertilization was 40% less likely to succeed when the father was overweight.<ref>{{cite news|title=Obesity &#124; Fat men linked to low fertility |url=https://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/wellbeing/fat-men-linked-to-lower-fertility-20101017-16p6l.html |publisher=Sydney Morning Herald |date=18 October 2010 |access-date=19 October 2010}}</ref>

The [American Fertility Society](/source/American_Fertility_Society) recommends an age limit for sperm donors of 50 years or less,<ref>{{cite journal |author=Plas, E., Berger, P., Hermann, M., Pflüger, H. |title=Effects of aging on male fertility? |journal=Experimental Gerontology |volume=35 |issue=5 |pages=543–51 |date=August 2000 |pmid=10978677 |doi= 10.1016/S0531-5565(00)00120-0|s2cid=19875208 }}</ref> and many [fertility clinic](/source/fertility_clinic)s in the [United Kingdom](/source/United_Kingdom) will not accept donations from men over 40 or 45 years of age.<ref name="UK age limit">"[http://www.spermdonorforum.com/documents/sperm_donor_clinics_uk_2007.pdf Age Limit of Sperm Donors in the United Kingdom]", PDF file</ref>

==See also==
* [Fertility](/source/Fertility)
* [Muliebrity](/source/wiktionary%3Amuliebrity)
* [Machismo](/source/Machismo)
* [Masculinity](/source/Masculinity)
* [Physical strength](/source/Physical_strength)
* [Virilization](/source/Virilization)
* ''[Virtus](/source/Virtus)''
* [''Vīrya'' (Hinduism)](/source/V%C4%ABrya_(Hinduism)) (Sanskrit term for the same)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{Citation
 | last= Schiebinger
 | first= Londa
 | year        = 1993
 | title       = Nature's Body
 | publisher   = Beacon Press
 | location    = Boston, Massachusetts}}

Category:Fertility
Category:Masculinity

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Virility](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virility) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virility?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.