Oestrogen-mimicking chemicals cause DNA fragmentation in sperm, destroy sperm count and motility
There are two hormone-disrupting chemicals that significantly damage the modern male: DEHP (diethylhexyl phthalate) and PCB 153. These chemicals are found in modern day carpets, clothing, and upholstery. Even though they are not directly consumed, their breakdown into the immediate environment is breathed in and absorbed by the human body. Researchers from the University of Nottingham have measured similar levels of these chemicals in the blood of both men and dogs and have found that they have a devastating effect on both men and dog's ability to reproduce.
The researchers measured the average concentration of these chemicals in males and tested the effect of these chemicals on semen samples in a laboratory setting. Once the semen was submerged in the toxic environment, the quality of the sperm declined. The sperm's ability to swim diminished. The hormone disrupting chemicals caused DNA fragmentation in the sperm samples. In a real life reproductive scenario, who knows what kind of birth defects the sperm would’ve conveyed?
This important new research was published in the journal Human Reproduction. “This new study is the first to test the effect of two known environmental contaminants, DEHP and PCB153, on both dog and human sperm, in the levels found occurring in samples,” state the researchers.
“And our findings suggest that man-made chemicals that have been widely used in the home and working environment may be responsible for the fall in sperm quality reported in both man and dog that share the same environment.”
Hormone disrupting chemicals cause infertility in dogs, early puberty in girls, and cancers of the reproductive system in young women
PCBs were generally banned throughout the world by 2004, but they persist in the environment and are readily absorbed into the human body today. PCBs are absorbed and carried in fatty foods.
DEHP or diethylhexyl phthalate is a pervasive endocrine disruptor manufactured into toys, perfumes, clothes, furniture, cosmetics, plastics, and carpets. Because pet dogs are living in this same toxic environment of synthetic fibers, furniture and flooring, they too are experiencing skyrocketing infertility rates and reduction in sperm quality as high as 30 percent.
According to researchers from the University of California, these same oestrogen-mimicking chemicals, including methyl paraben, speed up puberty in young girls. The chemicals, found in lotions and perfumes, activate the female sex hormone oestrogen and cause hormonal changes in girls, sparking adolescence in girls as young as nine years old. Scientists warn that this artificial stimulation of oestrogen puts young women at an increased risk of early puberty, infertility, and breast and ovarian cancers.
To learn more on how hormone disrupting chemicals are altering reproductive health, check out Chemicals.News.
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