At-home sperm collection business is booming thanks to fears that coronavirus will impact male fertility

As coronavirus continues to do damage to the U.S. economy, at-home sperm collection companies are seeing a boost in business, according to a report from The Daily Beast.

CryoChoice, which sends men preservable sample collection kits, has seen sales jump by as much as 20 percent in recent weeks. Other companies such as Legacy and Dadi have also seen significant jumps in business.

"Some of this spike may just be at-home kit companies absorbing brick-and-mortar fertility clinics’ business during a terrifying pandemic," the Daily Beast's Mark Hay reports. "Many facilities are trying to keep their doors open for folks like cancer patients who still need to start treatments that could leave them infertile. But quite a few clinics have either decided or been told by authorities that they are not essential services, scaling down operations or closing their doors entirely. Even clinics that have tried to stay open are increasingly reaching out to at-home collection companies for kits they can send to patients at high risk of contracting COVID-19, so that they can avoid unnecessary trips outside."

Hay notes that fears of the coronavirus pandemic has men worried about its potential effects on their fertility. There's currently no evidence that the virus has any adverse effects on fertility, but thanks to a questionable theory circulated by Chinese doctors and a study that suggested stress can affect sperm count, along with other chatter online, some men are worried.

"But most experts don’t tend to see much cause for serious concern here," Hay writes. "University of California–Los Angeles male fertility expert Jesse Mills told The Daily Beast 'the effect of a fever or serious illness on sperm production usually lasts about three months,' then clears up. And Matt Coward, the director of male reproductive medicine and surgery at University of North Carolina Fertility, doubts the virus will have long-term negative impacts on male fertility."

Read the full report over at The Daily Beast.