Cleveland Clinic study: Cell phones can lower sperm quality

By CNN's A. Chris Gajilan

(CNN) - Keeping a cell phone on talk mode in a pocket can decrease a man's sperm quality, according to new research from the Cleveland Clinic.

"We believe that these devices are used because we consider them very safe, but it could cause harmful effects due to the proximity of the phones and the exposure that they are causing to the gonads," says lead researcher Ashok Agarwal, the Director of the Center for Reproductive Medicine.

But he emphasized that it is far too early for men to change to change your cell phone carrying habits based on results of the small study. "There are many things that need to be proven before we get to that stage," he said.