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Groundbreaking Research Finds Alcohol Impacts Sperm Quality More Than Previously Thought
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It's common knowledge that women don't drink while they're pregnant, and even throughout the time they're trying to conceive. But what about the male partner in question? According to groundbreaking new research published in the journal Andrology, men's alcohol habits could have more of an impact on sperm quality and fetal development than we previously realized. Here's what they found.
Studying how alcohol impacts sperm quality
For this study, researchers wanted to better understand the relationship between alcohol consumption, sperm quality, and fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS).
To do so, they exposed male mice to alcohol for 10 weeks, and then took the alcohol away for four weeks. They also looked at the gene expression in the epididymis (a duct that stores and transports sperm), and levels of sperm in the mice.
And sure enough, even after four weeks without a drop of alcohol, the mice still showed signs of negatively impacted sperm quality.
As professor and researcher Michael Golding Ph.D., explains in a news release, it takes way longer than anyone thought for the impacts of alcohol on sperm quality to wear off.
“When someone is consuming alcohol on a regular basis and then stops, their body goes through withdrawal, where it has to learn how to operate without the chemical present,” Golding says, adding, “What we discovered is that a father’s sperm are still negatively impacted by drinking even during the withdrawal process, meaning it takes much longer than we previously thought for the sperm to return to normal.”
What to do about it
Whether you're trying to conceive now, or you might in the future, these findings highlight the importance of men being a part of the alcohol conversation as well—and for doctors to remind them about the risks.
It's worth noting that male alcohol consumption has been largely unconsidered in the pregnancy space, with only mothers being asked about their drinking habits by their doctors. The researchers hope their discovery will encourage men to put the bottle down sooner, for the sake of their sperm—and their unborn child.
So if you thought you could stop drinking one day and immediately have primo sperm, that unfortunately doesn't seem to be the case. Golding notes they still need to research more on when exactly to stop drinking if you're trying to conceive, but he estimates it could be for at least three months.
The takeaway
Women aren't the only ones who should abstain from drinking while they're trying to conceive; This research shows that men, too, would serve their families well to stop drinking for at least three months before conceiving.
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