If you’re looking into the pros and cons of getting a vasectomy, one thing you might not have considered is the impact it could have on the world’s climate crisis. As trusted vasectomy experts, we’ve seen a definite change in the number of men wanting a vasectomy for environmental reasons, but can it really help save the planet?
According to a recent Guardian article, with the world climate change crisis becoming increasingly urgent, there is a growing number of men choosing to get vasectomies for environmental reasons.
One interviewee questioned in their investigation said that he was motivated to sterilise himself because of the climate crisis, in part caused by population growth:
“I thought: you know what? I don’t want to bring a life into this world, because it’s pretty shitty as it is and it’s only going to get worse. We can’t offset our carbon problem on to the next generation, because it’s not fair on them.” – Lloyd Williamson
Although worldwide data on the popularity of vasectomies is thin at best, there is growing evidence to show that globally, more men are taking action by getting the snip.
Dr Snip’s very own Nick Demediuk, one of the world’s most prolific vasectomy clinicians, says most of his patients are fathers over the age of 35. But the doctor, who has completed more than 40,000 procedures since 1981, now estimates that about 200 of the 4,000 patients his clinic sees each year are younger men without kids. About 130 of them say they are doing it for the planet.
“In the old days, it was purely lifestyle,” Demediuk says of his younger, childless patients. “They wanted to travel the world, work hard and not be stuck with a kid. And that has shifted, probably over the past three or four years, to where the environment is the dominant reason.”
It’s no surprise that, with a generation that has more awareness of climate change, more questions are being asked about traditional family structures. A 2017 study reported that the best effective action an individual could take to help the planet was having one less child – something Prince Harry also revealed he would be doing too – by only having two children.
For environmental charity worker, Nate Miller from Colorado, the election of climate science denier Donald Trump helped him make his decision. “I made an appointment to get a vasectomy later that week. We’re driving ecosystems out of balance and causing mass extinction of countless species,” he says. “I think more people is the very last thing this planet needs.”
After doing some research, Miller decided that a vasectomy was the way to go. He booked in with a urologist to get answers to common, outdated myths around how much vasectomies hurt and whether it affects sexual activities.
The operation, which used to be more invasive and was carried out under general anaesthetic, is now typically bloodless; there is no scalpel involved. Instead, the scrotum is punctured under local anaesthetic with a tiny pair of forceps, creating a hole just big enough for the vasa deferentia – the two sperm-carrying tubes – to be drawn into the open air. The tubes are cut, sealed and popped back in.
Vasectomies can also help to address the gender imbalance that goes along with the choice and practice of birth control. Vasectomies come with less risk than more invasive and less reliable methods of female contraception, including sterilisation and the coil.
According to The Guardian, “There is hope that the climate crisis may burnish the vasectomy’s progressive image. In 2012, Jonathan Stack, a 64-year-old American filmmaker, co-founded World Vasectomy Day, a campaign dedicated to tackling the stigma and myths surrounding modern vasectomy. Stack had one himself after having three children. ‘It’s about gender equity, family planning and more responsible masculinity.’”
Whether or not a vasectomy is right for you, your partnership and your family-planning goals, the Dr Snip team to help. Our wealth of experience means that we’re true experts in everything vasectomy and can answer any question you may have. Please call 1300 377 647 or send us an online enquiry.
