Low sperm count linked to mums’ stress early in pregnancy – though it may not be the cause
- Sons of women who suffered stressful events in first 18 weeks of pregnancy – the death of someone close, marital problems, money woes – have low sperm counts
- Researchers have not established the stress affected the men’s sperm, and say other factors such as mothers’ smoking and drug use may be just as important
Men whose mothers suffered stressful events such as divorce or job loss in early pregnancy are more likely to have fewer and less active sperm, a new study suggests.
Among Australian 20-year-olds born of women who experienced at least three such events during the first 18 weeks of fetal growth, sperm count was a third lower and sperm motility down by 12 per cent compared to other men their age, they reported in the journal Human Reproduction.
Their testosterone levels were also lower, by about 10 per cent.
“Maternal exposure to stressful life events during early pregnancy, a vulnerable period for the development of organs, may have important lifelong adverse effects on men’s fertility,” concluded senior author Roger Hart, a professor of reproductive medicine at the University of Western Australia.
The link between stress and sperm count disappeared when the challenging events – the death of a close relative or friend, marital problems, severe money woes – occurred only during the final trimester of pregnancy.