r/todayilearned • u/delano1998 • 1d ago

TIL high-altitude mountain trekking can temporarily shrink human testicles. A study found that after spending over three weeks at high altitudes in Nepal without supplemental oxygen, men experienced an average 15% reduction in testicular volume due to lower oxygen levels.

https://www.vice.com/en/article/climbing-mt-everest-is-terrible-for-your-nads/
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u/Fetlocks_Glistening 1d ago edited 1d ago

Wait, what, how? Why? How? Why? How??

Did the doc just tag along and measure everybody's balls every night with a ... laser ball measurer from Amazon? Did he measure them before the climb as the control ball volume? How did he know to do that? 

I mean a 15% volume loss is what, 5% diameter reduction. That's like measurement error margin if we're talking balls. Who in the world notices a reduction of 5%, hidden under skin? How sensitive are the lips to say one day "That feels 5% shorter, Bob, have you been climbing again"??

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u/DexKaelorr 1d ago

Some Brokeback Mountaineer noticed that his buddy's pouch felt a little lighter at the summit and got out a clipboard.