Posts Tagged ‘male infertility’

Is male infertility linked to cardiovascular disease?

Monday, October 3rd, 2011

A man who has never had any children has a greater chance of dying from cardiovascular disease than fathers, researchers from Stanford University School of Medicine, California, reported in the journal Human Reproduction. The authors say that they do not know whether male infertility is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. They tracked 137,903 men who were members of the AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) for a period of ten years. They had set out to find out whether there might be link between the number of offspring a man has had with his long-term health. They found a link between parental status and cardiovascular risk. However, they stress that their findings in no way provide proof of a cause and effect.

They restricted the list to men who were either married or had been married because they wanted to compare males who had the intent and the opportunity to have children. Men with previous underlying diseases, such as stroke,, heart disease or some related condition were excluded. Hence, the men in their list started off in relatively good health. Approximately 10% of the men died during the study. About 20% of those deaths were caused by cardiovascular disease. They found that a childless man had a 17% greater chance of dying from a cardiovascular disease compared to fathers. Mortality from all causes was slightly higher among the childless men. However, this increase was nearly completely due to cardiovascular disease. If cardiovascular disease risk was taken out, there was no statistically significant difference between the groups.

In this study, there was no way of assessing a man's reproductive intent.. However, by not including unmarried men in this study, childlessness was brought a step closer to being a proxy for infertility.

Another reproductive issue that raises the risk of cardiovascular disease is erectile dysfunction as detailed in Dr. Meldrum's book, "Survival of the Firmest: The Canary in the Coalmine." I highly recommend it for men with erectile dysfunction.

 

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A danger to men’s fertility: BPA in plastic bottles

Monday, June 27th, 2011

Two recent articles outline potential dangers to mens fertility from environmental causes.

In a study performed on mice reported in Science Daily, daily exposure to a chemical that is prevalent in the human environment, bisphenol A (BPA), causes lowered fertility in male mice. 

Mice that received daily BPA injections for two months had lower sperm counts and testosterone levels than those of mice that received saline injections without BPA. Compared with untreated controls, mice exposed to BPA produced litters that were 50 percent smaller.

"We are being exposed to BPA in our daily lives at a level much higher than the safe recommended exposure," said the study's principal author, Surya Singh, PhD, associate professor in the university's biochemistry department. "In this study, we are trying to explore what the outcome can be if we are continuously exposed to BPA in our routine life." BPA-exposed mice received a dose that was twice the daily upper limit of safe exposure recommended by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency.

These new research findings add to a growing body of scientific evidence that links exposure to BPA, an endocrine (hormone) disrupter, with numerous adverse health effects, including on reproductive function. Human exposure to BPA comes from sources such as epoxy resin-lined food cans and hard polycarbonate plastics, which leach the chemical, especially when heated to high temperatures.

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Diet matters in making sperm

Tuesday, April 6th, 2010

We have all had the experience of being told that we need to eat a good, balanced diet. Turns out that's true, at least in order to produce normal sperm.

A study in the March 2010 issue of Fertility & Sterility examined the diets of 30 men with poor semen quality and 31 normospermic control subjects of couples attending a fertility clinic. They recorded dietary habits and nutrient consumption using a food frequency questionnaire. They found that control subjects had a significantly higher intake of carbohydrates, fiber, folate, vitamin C, and lycopene and lower intakes of proteins and total fat. Based on that they concluded that a low intake of antioxidant nutrients was associated with a poor semen quality.

RPMG's Dr. David Meldrum has a lot of information on the role of diet in male reproductive health on his website, Life Choices and Fertility.

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Psychological stress may affect sperm parameters

Saturday, April 3rd, 2010

One of the most frequent questions I am asked by both men and women is whether stress may be affecting their fertility. There is a lot of evidence that stress can adversly affect a woman's fertility.There are studies showing that interventions with acupuncture and Mind-Body programs can have a positive influence on the chance of IVF success.

Now a multi-center study in the March 2010 issue of the journal Fertility & Sterility shows that more than two recent stressful life events decreased sperm parameters. In order to decrease the affect of variables that they may have found in infertile men, they examined the sperm of 744 fertile males. They found that men reporting more than two recent stressful life events had an increased risk of being classified below standard thresholds for “normal” defined by concentration, motility and morphology criteria, compared with men reporting less than two stressful life events.

The authors conclude that stressful life events may be associated with decreased semen quality in fertile men. Based on these findings the experience of psychosocial stress may be a modifiable factor in the development of male infertility.

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