Infertility and Modern Lifestyle: Causes and Interventions
What is Infertility?
Infertility refers to the inability to conceive and reproduce. The “male factor” is responsible for 30-40% of cases, while the “female factor” is responsible for 40-50%, leaving the remaining percentage to be shared by the couple.
It appears that modern lifestyle and new habits play a significant role in the increase of the number of infertile couples. Some of the common causes of infertility related to modern lifestyle are: smoking, alcohol use, intense stress, high levels of pollution and radiation, changes in eating habits and sedentary lifestyle, as well as extensive use of chemicals and plastics.
The substance bisphenol A (BPA), a common component of hard plastics, has been directly linked to low sperm counts in men and a decrease in the number of egg follicles in women.
Phthalates are plasticizers used in vinyl products and artificial fragrances in the industry. Perfumes, colognes, body and room deodorants, and fabric softeners containing phthalates appear to function as endocrine disruptors. In particular, exposure during fetal development and early childhood can have consequences later in the individual’s adult life and in the normal functioning of the endocrine system.
Interventions are necessary and crucial, and often they are the key to success in achieving the goal of creating a family.
The consumption of trans fats and processed red meat (e.g., sausages) due to xenobiotics can affect the development of the testes and ovaries from intrauterine life. Furthermore, obesity is associated with endocrine disorders that prevent ovulation and spermatogenesis.
Abuses such as smoking, alcohol, and drugs cause damage to the structure of sperm and eggs, respectively, reduced sperm motility, erectile dysfunction, and a decrease in libido.
Anxiety (stress) conditions, on the other hand, create a special environment of oxidative stress and free radical formation in the body, keeping adrenaline and prolactin at high levels. This results in a decrease in endogenous progesterone and inhibition of ovulation.
It appears that the modern way of life has created several disorders in the reproductive mechanisms, and unless we intervene drastically, the drugs alone are not enough to correct “any disease“.
Therefore, interventions are necessary and crucial, and often they are the key to success in achieving the goal of creating a family.
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