Biologically speaking, I am right in the middle of my reproductive age. That's the years between 15 and 49, when most people with ovaries are able to have children. Socially speaking, that means I'm right in the middle of roughly 30 years' worth of public commentary, suggestions and judgments about my fertility. Whether it’s regular pleas from my mum to give her grandchildren, or depictions of desperate females in movies and TV, it's a reality that is hard to escape. And let's not forget about the ads that have been following me around the internet since the age of roughly 25, promising to track my ovulation, confirm a pregnancy or let me know about places nearby where I can freeze my eggs.
Secara biologis, saya berada tepat di tengah masa aktif reproduksi. Usia antara 15 sampai dengan 49 tahun, adalah masa bagi yang memiliki ovarium dapat hamil. Secara sosial, berarti saya berada tepat di tengah usia 30 tahunan diterpa oleh komentar publik, saran dan penghakiman tentang kesuburan saya. Baik itu tuntutan dari ibu saya untuk memberikannya cucu, maupun sosok wanita putus asa di film dan TV, kenyataan ini sulit dihindari. Belum termasuk iklan yang terus mengikutiku di internet sejak berusia 25 tahunan yang berjanji melacak masa ovulasi saya, memastikan kehamilan, atau memberitahu klinik terdekat untuk membekukan sel telur.
But what about the sperm? Why have none of my male friends or the guys I've dated been exposed to this same pressure?
Tetapi bagaimana dengan sperma? Kenapa tak ada teman pria atau teman kencan saya yang mengalami tekanan yang sama?
[Am I Normal? With Mona Chalabi]
[Normalkah Saya? oleh Mona Chalabi]
Well, we know from historical data that for generations, research into fertility has focused on poking and prodding uteruses, while our understanding of male fertility has continued to lag behind. For example, in the US, there was a 50-year gap between the founding of the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology in 1927 and the formation of the American Society of Andrology in 1975. And today in the US, there are an estimated five reproductive endocrinologists who mostly specialize with female patients, for every one male fertility specialist.
Berdasarkan data sejarah selama beberapa generasi, penelitian tentang kesuburan berfokus pada menusuk dan mendorong rahim, sementara pemahaman tentang kesuburan pria terus tertinggal. Misalnya, di AS, pernah terdapat 50 tahun jeda antara berdirinya Badan Obstetri dan Ginekologi Amerika pada 1927 dan dibentuknya Lembaga Andrologi Amerika pada 1975. Kini di AS, diperkirakan terdapat lima ahli endokrin reproduksi yang kebanyakan spesialis pasien wanita, untuk tiap satu spesialis kesuburan pria.
Research into male fertility really only began to make waves in the 1990s. And since then, research has started to chip away at the persistent myth that a man's sperm is viable over his entire life.
Penelitian tentang kesuburan pria baru benar-benar terjadi pada 1990an. Sejak itu, penelitian mulai menghilangkan mitos abadi bahwa sperma pria tetap aktif selama hidupnya.
A study from 2013 found that there is a big change that happens in male fertility after the age of 34. At age 35, their sperm count begins to drop. At 40, the sperm concentration, as well as the percentage of sperm with a normal shape, begins to decline. At 43, sperm motility decreases, And from the age of 45, semen ejaculate volume begins to go down. What all of this means is that from the age of 34, there is a declining likelihood that a man will father a child through intercourse. And that probability continues to decline as they get older. Crucially, that decline exists independently of the age of their female partner.
Sebuah studi pada 2013 menemukan bahwa terjadi perubahan besar pada kesuburan pria di atas usia 34 tahun. Pada usia 35 tahun, jumlah sperma mereka mulai menurun. Pada usia 40 tahun, konsentrasi sperma, serta persentase sperma dari bentuk normal, juga mulai menurun. Pada usia 43 tahun, motilitas sperma menurun. Usia 45 tahun ke atas, volume ejakulasi semen mulai menurun. Ini berarti usia 34 tahun ke atas, ada penurunan peluang seorang pria akan menjadi ayah melalui hubungan seksual. Kemungkinan tersebut makin menurun seiring bertambahnya usia. Yang terpenting, penurunan itu terjadi terlepas berapapun usia pasangan wanita mereka.
Because of research like this, a growing number of physicians are arguing that men have biological clocks, too. This is really important because most fertility research did not control for the age of the father. What this means is that so much of our understanding about how women in their late 30s are struggling to get pregnant has not taken into account that many of them are trying to get pregnant with men in their 40s.
Dengan adanya penelitian ini, semakin banyak dokter yang memperdebatkan jika pria juga memiliki jam biologis. Hal ini sangat penting karena kebanyakan penelitian kesuburan tidak mengontrol usia sang ayah. Begitu banyak pemahaman kita bagaimana wanita berusia 30an akhir berjuang untuk hamil tidak pernah diperhitungkan jika banyak diantara mereka berusaha hamil dengan pria berusia 40an.
Imagine the other fertility breakthroughs that could come about with even better research -- and the effect that all of that would have on our culture and our behavior. Young couples might be able to better prepare when to have children. Guys would be hounded by ads on when to freeze their sperm, and I would have even more reason to continue to date young hot men.
Bayangkan terobosan kesuburan lainnya dapat terjadi dengan penelitian yang lebih baik dan dampaknya terhadap budaya dan perilaku kita. Pasangan muda dapat lebih siap saat ingin memiliki anak. Kaum pria akan diburu iklan kapan saatnya membekukan sperma, dan saya punya lebih banyak alasan terus berkencan dengan pria muda seksi.
We've always known that it takes two to tango. Now it's time for research to give both partners equal billing.
Diperlukan sepasang pria dan wanita untuk hamil. Kini saatnya untuk penelitian yang adil bagi kedua belah pihak.