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Over
1/3 of the world’s male population
smokes. Recent evidence
published in the February issue of Fertility and Sterility,
the official publication of the American College of
Obstetricians and Gynecologists, documents alarming
associations between cigarette smoking and male infertility.
Smoking they determined is responsible for 1/3 of all causes
of infertility.
What
factors determine male fertility and how does smoking effect
these factors?
Sperm motility, number, active
count and chromosomal integrity (i.e. quality) are the most
critical factors contributing to male fertility. Studies now
show for the first time, a male who is past 35 years old
begins to show “wear and tear” of sperm quality. (see
previous article “male infertility”).
The recent study conducted
from 1991-1997 analyzed sperm samples of men who smoked more
than 1 cigarette a day, and discovered the following changes:
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Decreased sperm density by 15.3%
-
Decreased sperm count by 17.5%
-
Decreased sperm motility and mobility by 16.6%
-
Decreased sperm production numbers by 17%
-
Altered shape and penetrability was also significantly
altered.
WHY DOES SMOKING CAUSE THESE
PROBLEMS?
Cigarette smoke is
analogous to putting nuclear and chemical waste into your
system. We’ve known that individuals who reside near
environmental waste facilities from war torn countries or even
living near nuclear reactors can cause chromosomal damage, and
severe nutritional deficiencies. Imagine putting this
DNA-altering material into your lungs, which is what medical
research is currently studying. Cigarette smoke causes changes
to the DNA, causing cancers such as lung and breast. Now we
have definitive correlation between DNA changes at the sperm
level.
In addition to the chromosomal
and mechanical complications smoking causes, there are some
general changes that smoking causes that impairs fertility:
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Nutritional Deficiency. Our
bodies ability to perform self-maintenance is impaired when
environmental toxins, including cigarette smoke, depletes
our body of the necessary vitamins, minerals, and organic
products we need. Combine smoke with a modern diet that is
already deficient in these stores, and a vicious cycle is
created.
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Premature Aging.
Free-radicals are cellular scavengers found in the body.
(though they sound more like an extremist left-wing
political group). As a natural by product of metabolism,
they can accumulate, and like a pack of vultures, they begin
to attack the body relentlessly. As with ultraviolet
radiation, smoking merely accelerates the production of
these biologic vultures. For most of mankind, the most
effective defense we had was nature’s pharmacy—good well
balanced nutrition that gave us the tools we needed to
battle free radicals. However, the nutritional deficits
aggravated by smoke only compound with our poor diets to
weaken our only defense against the aging process.
What can I do?
1.No rocket science
involved: quit smoking!
2.Nutrition,
nutrition, nutrition!
Before penicillin,
prozac, and “the purple pill” became household items, mankind
relied on our own natural resources for health. In addition to
adding more produce, fiber, and green tea to your diet, the
American Medical Association as of June 19th, 2002
now endorses mandatory multivitamin supplementation. (see:
www.jama.org). See “A physician’s guide to smart
supplementation”
3. Increase your daily
physical activity. According to the American Medical
Association, 60 minutes of physical activity (whether walking
to the grocery store, gardening, or taking the stairs instead
of the elevator) will have tremendous benefits for your
overall health.
Remember, implementing simple
changes into your life may not only give you a better quality
of life, but give your children--both born and unborn--a
better chance for theirs as well. Isn’t that what all parents
wish for?
Best of
health and life to all! Dr. Jason
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