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The act of conceiving a child is something most people likely take for granted. The general presumption about having children is that anyone who's reached a certain age can do so, and that it takes virtually no effort at all. Ironically or not, it's almost certainly true that most of the efforts around procreation are geared towards preventing it from occurring. But though the majority of people who wish to have children can do so, there are any number of people who would like to conceive a child but cannot. This inability to conceive a child is often referred to as infertility.

Contrary to what some males may believe, male infertility can and does occur. Male infertility can be especially difficult for a man to cope with from an emotional perspective as general stereotypes of men as vital and vigorous sexual beings often persist. The inability of a male to produce offspring may be viewed as a failure on the male's part to live up to expectations. The term impotent for example typically refers to males, not females, who are unable to conceive children because of a sexual dysfunction. At its root, the word impotent refers to one who lacks potency, or strength. An impotent man then may literally be considered a man who lacks strength. Most men would likely consider it an insult for someone to refer to them as being weak.

There are various causes of male infertility, but typically male infertility comes down to one of two causes: an inability to perform sexual intercourse, or nonfunctional semen. Though it isn't completely necessary, sexual intercourse is the standard method for conceiving children. When a couple is unable to have sexual intercourse at all then, there's obviously going to be problems with conception. While women can have difficulty with intercourse, they may still be sexually functional. A male who isn't functional sexually will find it highly difficult, if not impossible, to have intercourse under any means.

Males may generally take their ability to produce healthy semen for granted, but the male's ability to produce semen that is capable of fertilization can be compromised. There are any number of ways that a man's semen can lose its capacity to fertilize. Having a vasectomy, a sterilization surgery, would be one obvious way. Physical trauma to the testicles can also damage semen output, as can excessive heat in the area of the testicles. Studies suggest that smoking cigarettes can also damage semen and potentially make a male infertile.

While the reasons for male infertility can and do vary, infertility solutions for both men and women do exist. Infertility is enough of a problem that numerous facilities that solely treat infertility are in place. There are infertile men who don't consider their infertility to be an issue. Those men who are infertile and do consider it a problem have treatment options available, and should seek them out.