Are men using over-the counter therapies to treat their infertility?

Most definitely!

Two reports show widespread use of alternative therapies for male factor infertility. The most commonly used self-administered supplements were antioxidants, with 92/147 (63%) using vitamin C or E, selenium, or zinc. Further, many men (11%) surveyed reported admitted using herbal preparations. Schoer (2002) reported a similar percentage of men taking herbs. The two most common herbal preparations being used were compounds containing ginseng or DHEA (dehydroepiandosterone). The Schoer study emphasized that, while the men took these preparations, over 80% had known medical causes of their infertility, such as varicocele, ejaculatory duct obstruction, or excessive marijuana use and, therefore, the herbal preparations would be unlikely to increase the pregnancy rate for these men.

Calling Dr. Google! Who hasn’t summoned the ‘good doctor’ to their home (computer) over a sickness, symptom or suggestion?  The internet and the information highway have changed the practice of medicine forever. And both patients and physicians are trying to adjust to this new technology. The internet has given patients an amazing amount of information but unfortunately in an unorganized, unobjective way without the built in ‘controls’  that evaluate the information dispensed.  Instead, patients gather information from the internet and then ask their physician to interpret the results.  Problem is that the results that they have collected may be inaccurate at worst, and at best, have absolutely nothing to do with their individual circumstances.