Sperm defects caused by exposure to environmental toxins can be passed down the generations, research suggests.
Scientists say fathers who smoke and drink should be aware they are potentially not just damaging themselves, but also their heirs.
Tests on rats showed sperm damage caused by exposure to garden chemicals remained up to four generations later.
The US study was presented to the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
If I was a young man I would not drink very heavily and not smoke two packets of cigarettes a day while I was trying to conceive a child
Professor Cynthia Daniels
Rutgers University
It suggests that a father’s health plays a greater role in the health of future generations than has been thought.
A team from the University of Idaho in Moscow tested the effects of a hormone-disrupting fungicide chemical called vinclozolin on embryonic rats.
The chemical altered genes in the sperm, including a number associated with human prostate cancer.
Rats exposed to it show signs of damage and overgrowth of the prostate, infertility and kidney problems.
The defects were also present in animals four generations on.
The scientists admitted that the rats were exposed to very high levels of vinclozolin.
Proof of principle
But they argued that their work shows that once toxins cause defects in sperm they can be passed down the generations.
Professor Cynthia Daniels, from Rutgers University in New Jersey, has written books on male and female reproduction.
She said men who drank a lot of alcohol had been shown to have increased rates of sperm defects; and nicotine from tobacco found its way into seminal fluid as well as blood.
Professor Daniels said: “We need to open up our eyes and look at the evidence.
“My advice to young couples would be moderation. Substances that have an impact on reproduction are often also carcinogenic.
“If I was a young man I would not drink very heavily and not smoke two packets of cigarettes a day while I was trying to conceive a child.”
Professor Neil McClure, a fertility expert at Queen’s University Belfast, UK, said the DNA in sperm cells was more tightly packed than in other cells, and so, to some extent, was protected from damage.
However, once sperm cell DNA was damaged, it had no mechanism by which to effect repairs.
He said: “There is no doubt that if you smoke like a chimney or drink vast amounts of alcohol it will result in sperm damage, and probably damage in the DNA of the sperm.
“My advice to any man trying for a baby would be to lead as healthy a lifestyle as possible.”
[BBC]
Ili bad iyo!! abija makani badala …hahahahahahaaa…no booz for ballies …
Mwaona ba Chakolwa imwe, who likes to makes babies while heavily drunk or has smoked a lot cigarettes, you are damaging unborn babies’ sperms.
What about waste from the mines, how about the so called Centa (fumes) people of Wusakile experiance daily. Could they also be carcinogenic or homone disrupters. I sometimes feel this costant exposure to this toxic fumes is harmful. Is that all the responsible mining authority could do? We want clean air and water. Development at the expense of humany health and environmental integrity is belongs to the industrial revolution era. Let us adopt the poluter pays principal.
What about waste from the mines, what about the so called Centa (fumes) people of Wusakile experiance daily. Could they also be carcinogenic or homone disrupters. I sometimes feel this costant exposure to this toxic fumes is harmful. Is that all the responsible mining authority could do? We want clean air and water. Development at the expense of humany health and environmental integrity is belongs to the industrial revolution era. Let us adopt the poluter pays principal.
There’s nothing new in this message.We all know how important it is to keep oneself healthy.The by-product of that is healthy offspring, a healthy family, ahealhy society and therefore a healthy nation.That is hard to accomplish when +70% of our nation is made up of drunks!
chibuku sales shud go up wen pipo read this asrticle
Chibuku sales have tripled indeed according to a random survey conducted on a selected pollster. Bring back Zambia Brewries mwe bantu!!!
Beer when drunk in modest is very good for a man attempting to hav a baby,but when drunk execively you end up making drunken babies,carefull ka!!!
MULEMENA BOYS: Mayo ulibwino no bufyashi walikwata nomba abalume bobe ubwafya besa nabakolwa. Beer when drunk in modest is very good for a man attempting to hav a baby,but when drunk execively you end up making Eagle Eagle babies who will pick up your habit later.
Yours truly misses chibuku.Viva